(Tennis news) Jennifer Brady has confirmed that she won’t be able to play the 2022 Australian Open as she hasn’t recovered from an injury. Brady was last seen playing in August at Cincinnati where she retired in the third round against Jelena Ostapenko due to a foot injury. The world number 25 reached the final of a Grand Slam for the first time this year at the Australian Open but lost to Naomi Osaka in straight sets.
Brady made her debut at the Grand Slams when she qualified for the 2017 Australian Open and reached the fourth round by defeating Heather Watson and Elena Vesnina on the way. She reached the fourth round at the US Open the same year and could only win one game as she lost to the then world number one Karolina Pliskova.
Brady went past the third round of a Grand Slam at the US Open last year as she reached the semifinals losing to Osaka in three sets. Brady had reached her career high ranking of 13 in February this season after which it dropped to 25 as she reached the fourth round once in the next 8 events. She played 25 matches this year and needs nine more victories for 250 career wins.
Brady also reached the semifinals of the Australian two years in the women’s doubles with Alison Riske where they lost to Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic. Brady also reached the quarterfinals last year partnering with Caroline Dolehide as the Australian Open remains the Slam where she has found the most wins. Brady won her first doubles title with Ashleigh Barty at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix WTA 500 in a tense three setter final against the American pair of Bethanie Mattek Sands and Desirae Krawczyk.
Brady will be joining Karolina Pliskova, Serena Williams and Bianca Andreescu as the players on the WTA tour who will be missing out on the opening Grand Slam of the year. The US Open this year also saw many withdrawals on tour as the injuries kept piling on, the ATP Cup has also contributed to a tight packed schedule for the players.
Brady's injury update was tweeted by the Australian Open officials as there are questions over Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal’s participation. Brady has not announced when she will return on the tour, the 26 year old currently is the fourth highest ranked American on the WTA tour. Her rankings will drop as she is set to miss a few of the starting events in the next season.
