Wimbledon champion withdraws from Australian Open last-minute as decision goes under radar

The have confirmed that reigning champion Barbora Krejcikova has pulled out of the Grand Slam on the eve of the tournament.

The official tournament list stated that just before the draw was made for qualifying, Krejcikova had withdrawn and will be replaced by Rebecca Marino in the main draw.

Krejcikova has yet to publicly explain her reasons or release a statement concerning the withdrawal, leading the decision to go slightly under the radar.

She is not the only big name in Melbourne that will be missing however, as former Australian Open champion Caroline Wozniacki and two-time Grand Slam finalist Karolina Pliskova have also pulled out prior to qualifying.

Spanish outlet claim that ‘physical issues’ have caused Krejcikova to sit out the opening Major of the year, having not played a match since the end-of-season Finals in Saudi Arabia last month.

Krejcikova did not sign up for any of the warm-up events in Australia despite being named the 10th seed in the women’s singles draw.

In 2024, Krejcikova reached the quarter-finals of the Melbourne Slam for the second time in her career, going down 6-2, 6-3 to eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka.

The hard court surface has perhaps proven to be the Czech star’s favoured surface in recent years. Aside from winning as an underdog in the summer, the only time she has gotten past the third round in Australia is over the past three seasons.

The 29-year-old went to the fourth round in 2023 in addition to two quarter-finals, a marketable improvement from her efforts especially at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows in the 2022, 2023 and 2024 campaigns.

Last time out at the WTA Finals, Krejcikova was in fine form and reached the semi-finals before losing to Qinwen Zheng.

She had also defeated in the group stage, before the American .