Wozniacki regaining momentum following illness that kept her sidelined

Caroline Wozniacki says she's starting to find her form again, having been sidelined with illness during the beginning of the season.

The former No.1 withdrew from Doha and Dubai, and told press at Dubai that she picked up a bug during the offseason that also affected her at the Australian Open. Wozniacki, who announced in 2018 that she has rheumatoid arthritis, said controlling the condition also left her more vulnerable to viral illness.

“I feel like it's definitely not been the greatest start to the year health-wise for me. I'm just really thankful I can be out there and play and compete,” she told press following her opening win at Miami. “All I can do right now is just try and get the matches under my belt, try to play better."

Wozniacki has won a title since she was diagnosed, capturing Beijing in 2018, but says she has been lacking practice this season. Coming back at Indian Wells, she went down in the opening round. But now with two weeks of training before Miami, she is starting to find her game.

"Finally the last week or so, I really feel like I'm starting to hit the ball well, in practice," she said. "It's hard when you're in bed most of the time through Doha, Dubai. I expect a lot out of myself. Going to play Indian Wells and basically not having practiced for a month, I still wanted to play well. I thought I played pretty decent compared to how much I'd been able to practice. I was proud of my fight."

Wozniacki, who won her third round match against Monica Niculescu at Miami in straight sets, says she is still motivated, commenting, "I just have to keep putting myself out there and I have to keep just doing my best. That's really all I can ask of myself right now.”

Wozniacki faces No. 27 Su-Wei Hsieh for a spot in the quarterfinals.