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World number 19 Daria Kasatkina announced she is at her "limit" and chose to end her tennis season early, characterizing the grueling schedule as "too much, mentally and emotionally."

The 28-year-old changed her citizenship from Russia to the Australian nation in March, following public criticism regarding her home country's LGBTQ+ regulations and the ongoing conflict in the Ukrainian region.

Her performance suffered for form this year, failing to win a tournament and finishing with a record of 19 wins and 21 losses.

Kasatkina linked the emotional stress from her change of citizenship as a major contributor to her challenges, which involve not visiting with her parent for four years.

She expressed in a detailed post: "I have been far from fine for a long time and, honestly speaking, my results and performances reflect that."

"I have reached breaking point and sadly I am in the same boat as others," she added.

"Add in the situation the emotional and mental stress associated with my nationality switch and I can only handle so much I can manage and take as an single person."

"Should this label me as weak, then I accept it, I am not strong enough," she remarked.

"Nonetheless, I know I am resilient and will get stronger by taking a break and recharging."

"It's time I listened to myself for once."

Fellow Athletes Similarly Halting Their Years Prematurely

Former top-five players Svitolina and Badosa similarly ended their seasons early in the past few weeks.

The Ukrainian star stated she had "not felt like myself", while Badosa has discussed the psychological impact of an ongoing spinal issue.

Additional athletes have also spoken about the effect of the tennis calendar.

A quintet of competitors withdrew injured in two tournaments in the Chinese tournaments recently, with six-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek commenting the season is "too long and intense."

Tour Requirements and Athlete Issues

The WTA has made it mandatory for elite athletes to participate in every Grand Slam, ten premier events and six secondary competitions.

The majority of 1000 events on the WTA and men's ATP Tour last a fortnight, as do all four Grand Slams.

Players can skip mandatory events if they are injured or have private matters, but they will not get any points for the standings or prize money if they do not play.

Former world number one Djokovic, who has reduced his tournament appearances in recent years to preserve his health, has called on players to be better aligned in advocating for reforms.