By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Saturday January 11, 2025
11 active Grand Slam champions entered the women’s singles draw at the Australian Open, but one of them – 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova – was a last-minute withdrawal.
Vondrousova announced the news on Monday in Melbourne, and was replaced by Great Britain’s Harriet Dart in the draw.
Dart stepped in to face Croatian qualifier Jana Fett.
Marketa Vondrousova, who played 1.5 matches since Wimbledon (last week in Adelaide), withdraws from the #AusOpen minutes before her first round match.Lucky loser Harriet Dart entered to play Janna Fett. pic.twitter.com/6wAo64apnK
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) January 13, 2025
“Heartbroken to withdraw from the Australian Open due to an injury I sustained in Adelaide,” Vondrousova wrote on social media. “I was looking forward to the tournament but health comes first. Thank you for your support and hopefully see you on court soon.”
The 25-year-old Czech underwent shoulder surgery in 2024, but her current injury is to her upper leg. She left her round of 16 match last week in tears after retiring due to injury against Diana Shnaider.
In Melbourne she was seen in practice with heavy strapping on her thigh, but was unable to get fit enough to compete.
The former Wimbledon champion lost in the first round of her title defense to Jessica Bouzas Maneiro. She was the first defending champion to lose in the first-round of her title defense at Wimbledon since 1994.
