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As the first Grand Slam of the year edges closer, a few 2024 Australian Open withdrawals were always going to come. Of course, it’s always a shame to see top players withdraw from such a major event. But that’s just part of professional tennis, unfortunately.
And while the ATP Australian Open entry list, as well as the WTA Australian Open entry list has been available for a while now, this list can always change. On that note, the changes to this list by way of Australian Open withdrawals will be fully documented right here. This is my main goal today – to inform you of all of the latest news relating to these withdrawals, as I’m sure you have gathered.
Furthermore, while the information concerning these withdrawals is accurate at the time of writing, it’s important to note that this list can always grow. By this, I mean that more Australian Open withdrawals could be announced between now and the time of the event.
Of course, we all hope that the list of withdrawals doesn’t grow too much more, but that’s out of our hands! So rather than focus on what could occur over the next week or so, let’s keep the focus on the information that we have so far.
Australian Open withdrawals 2024 – a quick overview
Contents
As referenced above, the list of confirmed main draw entrants for the 2024 Australian Open has been publicly available for many weeks already. But as the description suggests, this is just the ‘initial list’.
Once entered, players are not necessarily committed to the tournament until the day that the draw is made. This is the general process for all professional tennis tournaments. So really, the initial list only tells us who has entered the Australian Open – nothing more, nothing less.
Beyond that, players are within their rights to withdraw from the event if they have a valid reason to do so. This could be because of injury, ill health, or other reasons that are viewed as valid and justified by the ATP/WTA. Furthermore, as the range of Australian Open withdrawals has come through in recent weeks, this has had an impact on the lineup for the main draw.
In short, whenever a withdrawal is confirmed for the main draw, somebody is pulled up from the list of ‘main draw alternates’. These are usually the individuals who are the highest-ranked players set to compete in the qualifying draw. And once again, every withdrawal brings a different name into the main draw for the Australian Open.
However, with just one week to go until the 2024 Australian Open, at the time of writing, many of the suspected withdrawals have already been confirmed. Yet this doesn’t mean that more shock withdrawals will not come through.
This has happened within a week of the Australian Open starting before, and I’m sure it will happen again.
Anyway, that’s your crash course on Australian Open withdrawals over with! So now, let’s cover the specific list of players that have withdrawn.
ATP Australian Open withdrawals – a run-through of the latest announcements
Although the topic of withdrawals from the Australian Open was never going to be overly positive, there is at least some good news for the men’s event. Up to this point, the range of high-profile withdrawals is very small indeed. However, the recent Novak Djokovic injury, as well as Nadal’s on-court discomfort in Brisbane, has put many tennis fans on edge.
This is perfectly understandable. Yet for now, those two legends are still in the draw, and what a treat it will be to see them both competing in Melbourne! Anyway, coming back to the list of Australian Open withdrawals for the men’s event, there is only one big name that I must bring to your attention.
Nick Kyrgios
News of Kyrgios’ withdrawal from the Australian Open broke back in December 2023. As you might recall, Nick Kyrgios did a quick stint on the Tennis Channel during the 2023 ATP Finals, and he seemed to enjoy himself. Naturally, this caused quite a stir with tennis pundits as to whether such a move was reflective of his intentions to step away from the ATP Tour.
But for all intents and purposes, Kyrgios seemed very positive about his return in time to compete in some of the biggest tournaments of the ATP 2024 schedule. However, in December, Kyrgios made the sad announcement that he would not be ready to compete at the 2024 Australian Open.
He is obviously a huge loss for the tournament as a whole, regardless of whether you love or loathe the guy. And ironically, it was the 2023 Australian Open where Kyrgios withdrew just the day before the event due to complications with his knee. So for the moment, the Australian Open doesn’t seem to be a tournament that agrees with Nick Kyrgios.
With that said, let me at least provide some good news about Nick Kyrgios, despite the fact that he forms part of the Australian Open withdrawals list. In short, when Kyrgios announced his withdrawal, he also said that he just wanted to make sure he was back at the top of his game when he made his return to the ATP Tour.
Adding to that, the immensely talented Aussie stated that he just needs ‘a little more time’. So reading between the lines, I do expect to see Nick Kyrgios competing again at some point in the 2024 season.
WTA Australian Open withdrawals – several big names identified
Now it’s time to switch our attention from the men’s withdrawals to the women’s withdrawals. And unfortunately, the list of withdrawals for the WTA Australian Open is far more extensive than the ATP Australian Open.
This means that a greater number of high-profile players have dropped out of the main draw, for which I will provide information on each of them now.
Karolina Muchova
Of the many withdrawals that have been announced with regard to the WTA Australian Open recently, this is the biggest story of the bunch. As you might be aware, Karolina Muchova is an established top-10 player on the WTA Tour. But sadly, she hasn’t been able to compete since reaching the semi-final of the 2023 US Open.
Many speculate that it was during the US Open that Muchova picked up a wrist injury, yet if so, she certainly fought valiantly in the Big Apple. Yet since that impressive run to the semi-finals, Muchova hasn’t played a single match – and she even withdrew from the 2023 WTA Finals in Mexico.
Since then, while she had confirmed preparations for the Australian Open, the wrist issue has not recovered to the point at which she feels it needs to be.
Madison Keys
Another huge blow to the WTA Australian Open has been announced in recent days. This time, the shock news relates to the big hitting American, Madison Keys. As a two-time semi-finalist at the Australian Open, Keys will no doubt have very fond memories down under.
Therefore, I’d assume that the Australian Open is one of her favourite tournaments of the season, which makes her withdrawal all the more painful. As for when Keys was added to the list of Australian Open withdrawals, she confirmed via social media on January 4th that she would be withdrawing from the event.
This is reportedly due to an ongoing shoulder problem, for which her medical staff advised her to withdraw.
Belinda Bencic
If you follow the top news stories of the WTA Tour, you may already know why Belinda Bencic has withdrawn from the 2024 Australian Open. Yet if you didn’t see the news, excitingly, Bencic announced in November 2023 that she is pregnant.
Furthermore, as you will soon find out, Bencic isn’t the only WTA player who is expecting to welcome a little one into the world in 2024. As for when her withdrawal was announced, no exact date has been supplied by the tournament organizers.
But based on the timing of her pregnancy announcement, we can hazard a guess and say that she likely withdrew in November or December 2023.
Petra Kvitova
Ready to be surprised? On New Year’s Day, Petra Kvitova announced that she is pregnant!
The 33-year-old Czech is set to welcome her first child with long-time partner and coach Jiri Vanek during the summer of 2024. Of course, this is fantastic news for Kvitova and her husband, but it does mean that she is now part of the 2024 Australian Open withdrawals list.
As for her previous results at the Australian Open, Kvitova made the finals of the 2019 event, losing to Osaka – who has just made her return to the WTA Tour after giving birth last year.
Venus Williams
Last but not least, the legendary Venus Williams has recently confirmed that she will not be competing in the 2024 Australian Open. Amazingly, at 43 years of age, Venus Williams has competed in the Australian Open on 21 separate occasions. This is pretty staggering, yet sadly, 2024 will not be her 22nd appearance.
Williams is struggling with an ongoing injury, which is the cause for her withdrawal, yet she hopes to be back in time for the Sunshine Double in March.
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