Marketa Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, has withdrawn from the 2025 Australian Open due to an injury sustained at Adelaide International.
Vondrousova announced the unfortunate news before her first match. She said, ” I am heartbroken to withdraw from the Australian Open due to an injury I sustained in Adelaide. I was looking forward to the tournament, but health comes first.”
That injury came midway through her second-round match with Diane Shnaider at Adelaide on January 8. Vondrousova had the lead, called a medical timeout, and after consulting with the physio, tearfully retired from the tournament.
Wishing Marketa Vondrousova a speedy recovery after her retirement against Shnaider 🙏
Final score: 4-6, 1-1, RET. pic.twitter.com/hptztvOouQ
— wta (@WTA) January 8, 2025
Adelaide was the first tournament she played since Wimbledon 2024 when she lost in the first round while trying to defend her title. She planned to play in the Paris Olympics but was forced to withdraw.
Vondrousova is the third former Wimbledon champion to withdraw from the Australian Open. The others are Barbora Krejcikova (2024) and Simona Halep (2019).
British tennis player Harriet Dart will take Vondrousova’s place in the draw.
Marketa Vondrousova’s Injury History
Vondrousova has won two WTA titles, one of which is Wimbledon, but many wonder how many more there could have been if most of her career had not been focused on dealing with injuries. Persistent wrist and hand issues made it miraculous that she was able to come back to the game at all.
The 27-year-old Czech Republic player enjoyed a career-high singles ranking of World No. 6 in September 2023. She is a former French Open finalist. Vondrousova’s best singles result was a fourth-round finish in 2021, and she was a doubles semifinalist in 2019.
She is now 153rd in the world and will likely slide further downward because she cannot play in Melbourne.
