Arina Rodionova, the highest-ranked female tennis player in Australia, remains motivated despite not receiving a wildcard for her home grand slam, which has sparked controversy.
The veteran from Victoria recently made a plea to the Australian Open organizers to not overlook her, as she fell one win shy of breaking into the top 100 in the world rankings for the first time at the Brisbane International tournament.
However, Rodionova was overlooked on Friday in favor of Daria Saville, a former top-20 player, who was given the last wildcard spot for the first grand slam of the season by Tennis Australia. The tournament is set to begin in just over a week on Sunday.
The Australian player who bats with their right hand has climbed to their highest career ranking of 105, although they were ranked 112 when the Australian Open main draw was decided.
In order to qualify for the Open main draw, she must win three matches starting on Monday.
On Friday, Rodionova wrote on social media, “I wish I could express my surprise, but to be honest,”.
The feeling of accomplishing everything by yourself, despite any obstacles, is truly rewarding.
“I am excited to attend the Australian Open qualifications in a few days and look forward to seeing you all there.”
In 2023, Rodionova had a strong performance on the ITF Tour, winning a total of 78 matches and earning seven titles. This impressive run led to a significant jump in her ranking, from No 302 to nearly breaking into the top 100.
She took that document with her to Brisbane, which was her first WTA event in almost two years. There, she defeated Martina Trevisan, who was recently ranked in the top 20, and Sofia Kenin, a former Australian Open champion.
“I would have awarded [Open wildcard] to myself, but there are other individuals involved,” stated Rodionova upon advancing to the third round in Brisbane.
I hope they are enjoying my performance this week.
I have completed all the difficult tasks and positioned myself in the best way possible. There was nothing else I could have done to better my chances.
Saville, who is recovering from a significant knee injury, made it to the fourth round of the Australian Open in both 2016 and 2017.
After making a comeback to the tour in June, the ex-junior world champion has seen an increase in her ranking from 322nd place to her current position of 209th.
At the start of the year, Saville had a successful first-round victory in Brisbane, but ultimately lost in a close three sets match against 11th seed Anastasia Potapova.
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The 29-year-old is now a part of the group of women’s wildcard recipients, which includes former world No 1 and 2018 Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki, as well as Australians Kim Birrell, Olivia Gadecki, and Taylah Preston.
In addition to needing to try to qualify, Rodionova will also face the financial consequence of not receiving the guaranteed $120,000 given to first-round losers at Melbourne Park.
Madison Keys, who has reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open twice before, has announced that she will not be participating in the event this year due to a shoulder injury. She will be replaced by Sara Errani, currently ranked 104th in the world.
On Friday, Jason Kubler and James McCabe from Australia were granted wildcards for the men’s category.
Kubler performed exceptionally well in Brisbane, defeating former Australian Open semi-finalist Aslan Karatsev to advance to the round of 16, but ultimately losing to Rafael Nadal.
Ranked world No 102 in singles, Kubler is the reigning Australian Open men’s doubles champion alongside compatriot Rinky Hijikata.
McCabe, a 20-year-old resident of Sydney, has climbed over 100 spots in the rankings in 2023 and will now have his first appearance in a grand slam tournament.
The 272nd ranked player nearly caused an upset against Dominic Thiem in the first round of Brisbane qualifiers. Despite facing multiple match points, the former world number three and 2020 US Open winner managed to make a comeback and win in three sets.
Source: theguardian.com
