Sharapova withdraws from St Petersburg with shoulder injury

FILE PHOTO: Tennis - Australian Open - Fourth Round - Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, January 20, 2019. Russia's Maria Sharapova in action during the match against Australia's Ashleigh Barty. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

ST PETERSBURG, Russia (Reuters) - Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova withdrew from her second-round match at the WTA St Petersburg Ladies Trophy on Wednesday because of a shoulder injury, tournament organisers said.

"Sharapova is withdrawing from her match today due to a right shoulder injury," the WTA St Petersburg Ladies Trophy 2019 wrote on Twitter.

Sharapova, 31, had been set to play fellow Russian Daria Kasatkina, the third seed in the tournament, in the second round. Kasatkina wins by walkover, organisers said.

Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion who rarely takes part in tournaments in Russia, had earned her first WTA win in the country in more than a decade on Monday by defeating Australia's Daria Gavrilova in straight sets.

(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)