The world women's tennis number two Dinara Safina has pulled out of next week's Miami Open tournament because of persistent back injury.
Safina has been bothered by the injury since late last season.
Safina will miss her third consecutive tournament since retiring injured during her fourth-round match against compatriot Maria Kirilenko at the Australian Open in January.
The 23-year-old says she's hoping to be back for the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix to be held in Stuttgart from April 26th.
