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Karolina Pliskova out of the Australian Open
Australian Open, WTA Tennis Players

Australian Open dealt another blow as top WTA star withdraws with injury


Karolina Pliskova has been dealt an injury blow ahead of the Australian Open in Melbourne next month.

The world number four reached the semi-finals in 2019 and the quarters this year, but a hand injury sustained in a practice session means she has been forced to withdraw from the upcoming event.

Pliskova has followed Serena Williams (injury) and Bianca Andreescu (mental health) in pulling out of the first Grand Slam of the season.

She will also miss WTA tournaments in Adelaide and Sydney although her injury is not believed to be an especially long-term one.

“Unfortunately I hurt my right hand in practice yesterday and I won’t be able to play in Adelaide, Sydney, and (the) Australian Open this year.

“I am sad not being able to start my season in Australia and I will miss my Australian fans very much.”

It is still expected to be a strong field for the WTA side of the event, although it remains to be seen what effect, if any, the vaccination mandate has on participation.

After weeks of debate, the Victoria government recently confirmed all players wishing to enter Australia to compete would have to provide proof of vaccination against COVID-19.

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Michael Graham, Tennishead.net Editor, has been a professional sports journalist for his whole career and is especially passionate about tennis. He's been the Editor of Tennishead.net for over 5 years and loves watching live tennis by visiting as many tournaments as possible. Michael specialises in writing in-depth features about the ATP & WTA tours.