Ajla Tomljanovic has suffered Australian Open heartbreak earlier than the Melbourne main has even began, lacking a treasured seeding by one week and two rankings spots.
An premature knee niggle that compelled Tomljanovic’s withdrawal from final week’s United Cup has come again to hang-out the Australian No.1 – and threatens to merciless her Open dream.
Tomljanovic dropped two positions within the rankings this week to world No.35, down from a career-high world No.33 after her stellar 2022 season.
With former world No.1 Simona Halep not contesting the Open, Tomljanovic would have nabbed a seeding had she gained a singles match on the new blended groups’ occasion.
A coveted first-time grand slam seeding would have ensured Tomljanovic could not probably strike a higher-ranked rival till at the least spherical three.
She’s now at risk of operating right into a heavyweight – and probably even world No.1 Iga Swiatek within the first spherical – when the Open draw is performed at Melbourne Park on Thursday.
The setback is particularly irritating after Tomljanovic final 12 months grew to become the primary Australian feminine to succeed in the Wimbledon and US Open quarter-finals because the nice Evonne Goolagong Cawley in 1979.
Integral additionally in main Australia to the 2022 Billie Jean King Cup remaining, Tomljanovic has carried out an excellent job filling the nigh-on unattainable footwear of Ash Barty as Australia’s new girls’s No.1.
The retired reigning Australian Open champion instructed AAP earlier than Tomjanovic’s seedings setback that the 29-year-old loomed as a severe title contender in Melbourne.
“And that’s the genuine feeling among the players,” Barty stated.
“Certainly when I played Ajla, I knew I had to be at my absolute very best or she’d completely roll me.
“And she’s received that respect from everybody.”
Tomljanovic took the opening set of a pulsating Wimbledon quarter-final against eventual champion Elena Rybakina in July before also losing a high-quality US Open last-eight encounter to world No.2 Ons Jabeur.
While Tomljanovic has missed out, fellow Australians Nick Kyrgios and Alex de Minaur have crucially been seeded 20th and 23rd respectively in the men’s singles.
That gives Kyrgios and de Minaur all-important protection against top-eight players until at least the last 16 of the season’s first grand slam starting on Monday.
Defending champion Rafael Nadal is the men’s top seed in the absence of injured world No.1 Carlos Alcaraz, with nine-time winner Novak Djokovic named fourth seed on Wednesday.
Swiatek is the women’s top seed as the Pole looks to add the Australian Open crown to the French and US Open titles she already holds.
Australian Open seedings:
MEN
1. Rafael Nadal (ESP)
2. Casper Ruud (NOR)
3. Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE)
4. Novak Djokovic (SRB)
5. Andrey Rublev (N/A)
6. Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN)
7.Daniil Medvedev (N/A)
8. Taylor Fritz (USA)
9. Holger Rune (DEN)
10. Hubert Hurkacz (POL)
11. Cameron Norrie (GBR)
12. Alexander Zverev (GER)
13. Matteo Berrettini (ITA)
14. Pablo Carreno Busta (ESP)
15. Jannik Sinner (ITA)
16. Frances Tiafoe (USA)
17. Marin Cilic (CRO)
18. Lorenzo Musetti (ITA)
19. Karen Khachanov (N/A)
20. Nick Kyrgios (AUS)
21. Denis Shapovalov (CAN)
22. Borna Coric (CRO)
23. Alex de Minaur (AUS)
24. Diego Schwartzman (ARG)
25. Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP)
26. Daniel Evans (GBR)
27. Miomir Kecmanovic (SRB)
28. Grigor Dimitrov (BUL)
29. Francisco Cerundolo (ARG)
30. Sebastian Korda (USA)
31. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (ESP)
32. Yoshihito Nishioka (JPN)
WOMEN
1. Iga Swiatek (POL)
2. Ons Jabeur (TUN)
3. Jessica Pegula (USA)
4. Caroline Garcia (FRA)
5. Aryna Sabalenka (N/A)
6. Maria Sakkari (GRE)
7. Coco Gauff (USA)
8. Daria Kasatkina (N/A)
9. Veronika Kudermetova (N/A)
10. Madison Keys (USA)
11. Paula Badosa (ESP)
12. Belinda Bencic (SUI)
13. Danielle Collins (USA)
14. Beatriz Haddad Maia (BRA)
15. Petra Kvitova (CZE)
16. Anett Kontaveit (EST)
17. Jelena Ostapenko (LAT)
18. Liudmila Samsonova (N/A)
19. Ekaterina Alexandrova (N/A)
20. Barbora Krejcikova (CZE)
21. Martina Trevisan (ITA)
22. Elena Rybakina (KAZ)
23. Shuai Zhang (CHN)
24. Victoria Azarenka (N/A)
25. Marie Bouzkova (CZE)
26. Elise Mertens (BEL)
27. Irina-Camelia Begu (ROM)
28. Amanda Anisimova (USA)
29. Qinwen Zheng (CHN)
30. Karolina Pliskova (CZE)
31. Kaia Kanepi (EST)
32. Jil Teichmann (SUI)
