Victoria Azarenka has withdrawn from the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships to recover from a bruised bone in her right foot.
Azarenka, replaced by Serena Williams at No. 1 on Monday, said she picked up the injury en route to the final in Doha, where she beat Williams.
The Australian Open champion had the opportunity to regain the top ranking in Dubai had she gone further in the draw than Williams, but said it would be "stupid" to compete with an injury as she prepares to head to the United States for treatment.
"I have been playing on it a lot over the last five days so going to a new tournament is too much to handle right now," Azarenka said. "It keeps getting worse. It was an unfortunate decision that I had to make, and I'm very disappointed."
Azarenka has won her last 12 matches, but has had her health problems already this season. She pulled out of her semi-final in Brisbane - also against Williams - after a bad pedicure.
At the Australian Open she drew criticism for the lengthy medical time-out she took in her semi-final against Sloane Stephens for what she said was a panic attack but later attributed to a rib injury.
She pulled out of the Dubai tournament midway through the tournament in 2012 because of a left ankle injury.
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