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Ajla Tomljanovic is the only non-wildcard Aussie in the women’s main draw at the Australian Open after making a successful comeback from injury to enter the tournament with a protected ranking.
The 2022 Wimbledon and US Open quarter-finalist, who missed out on a homecoming at Melbourne Park in January due to a knee injury that required surgery and subsequently ruled her out of Roland Garros and Wimbledon, is one of 15 confirmed Australian starters.
World No.12 Alex de Minaur leads the charge of 11 Aussie men, including wildcards, in the singles draw, while Tomljanovic will be joined by three more wildcard compatriots to swell a local contingent that could increase through more wildcards and qualifying.
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De Minaur is set to be the No.12 seed, making him the highest-seeded Aussie male at the event since Lleyton Hewitt was No.3 at the 2006 event.
Being inside the top 12 means de Minaur cannot play a top-four seed (Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev, Jannik Sinner) until the quarter-finals. He would be in line to face one of Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alex Zverev or Holger Rune in the fourth round.
Tomljanovic’s Open return comes on the back of the 30-year-old capturing the biggest singles title of her career in Brazil last month when she beat Argentina’s Martina Capurro Taborda 6-1 7-5 to win the MundoTenis Open in Florianopolis.
Tomljanovic is one of nine male and female players to enter the singles main draw with a protected ranking.
Among them are former Australian Open champions Angelique Kerber and Naomi Osaka, who gave birth in February and July respectively.
Players can request a protected ranking for between nine and 12 tournaments depending on the length of their absence from competition but must have missed more than six months to receive the direct entry.
Former men’s world No.3 Milos Raonic will return to Melbourne Park for the first time since 2021 after two years plagued by calf and achilles injuries.
The hulking Canadian is ranked 318 in the world but could come close to a seeding after receiving a protected rank of 33 along with American Reilly Opelka, who missed all four grand slams this year due to wrist surgery.
Queenslanders Kimberly Birrell and Olivia Gadecki and West Australian Taylah Preston will join Tomljanovic in the women’s main draw after receiving wildcards on Wednesday, while 2018 champion Caroline Wozniacki has also been issued a wildcard after ending an absence of more than three years in August on the way to a fourth-round appearance at the US Open.
Preston, 18, was the youngest Australian wildcard recipient after lifting her ranking 630 places from No.836 to No.206 as she collected four trophies, including the 60K Australian Pro Tour title in Brisbane last month.
“I’ve dreamt of playing the Australian Open since I first started playing tennis, so to be given this opportunity is amazing and I am extremely grateful and excited,” Preston said.
“I’m working hard on and off the court to prepare and I can’t wait to get out on court and play.”
AUSTRALIANS IN THE OPEN
Men’s singles
Alex de Minaur (currently No.12 seed)
Alexei Popyrin
Jordan Thompson
Aleksandar Vukic
Thanasi Kokkinakis
Christopher O’Connell
Rinky Hijikata
Marc Polmans (WC)
James Duckworth (WC)
Adam Walton (WC
Women’s singles
Ajla Tomljanovic
Kimberly Birrell (WC)
Olivia Gadecki (WC)
Taylah Preston (WC)
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