Exciting Aussie stars join Australian Open draws

1 year ago 85

On the backmost of his fourth-round quality astatine Wimbledon earlier this year, Jason Kubler headlines a radical of six Australians awarded main-draw wildcards for adjacent month's Australian Open.

Ranked satellite No.107, Kubler was conscionable abbreviated of automatic qualification, but his efforts this play person been rewarded by Tennis Australia with enactment into the 64-player men's singles field.

Kubler is joined by countrymen Alexei Popyrin and Rinky Hijikata successful the men's singles competition, portion Storm Hunter (nee Sanders), Talia Gibson and Olivia Gadecki volition contention the women's draw.

From the group, 23-year-old Popyrin has antecedently reached the 3rd circular of the Open successful 2019 and 2020, nevertheless his compatriots are each inactive hunting their archetypal singles wins astatine their location expansive slam.

Hunter came adjacent astatine past year's slam aft starring Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka by a acceptable and a interruption astatine Rod Laver Arena, nevertheless the No.2 effect recovered to triumph the lucifer successful 3 sets.

Coming disconnected the backmost of a career-best play successful 2022 - which included 3 WTA doubles titles, her archetypal rand slam rubric successful the mixed doubles astatine the US Open and a streaking tally for Australia astatine the Billie Jean King Cup finals - Hunter cannot hold to prime up her form.

Stream each match, each tribunal of the Australian Open unrecorded and escaped on 9Now from January 16-29.

"I'm ace excited to person a wildcard into the Australian Open," she said.

"Thank you to the Tennis Australia squad for this astonishing opportunity. I'm incredibly grateful to person the accidental to play astatine location and privation to proceed playing astatine the level I was capable to play astatine during the Billie Jean King Cup."

Entered successful their archetypal large singles draw, promising youngsters Gibson and Gadecki volition marque their expansive slam debuts erstwhile they measurement connected tribunal astatine Melbourne Park.

Gibson, who was precocious named the Junior Female Athlete of the Year astatine the Australian Tennis Awards, began this play ranked extracurricular the apical 1000 but has since climbed to a career-best of satellite No.342.

"I consciousness precise honoured and grateful to person a wildcard into the main gully of a expansive slam for the archetypal time," she said.

"It's ever been a imagination of excavation to play successful a slam and it's specified a peculiar feeling to cognize that I've been fixed an accidental to bash this successful my location state astatine the Australian Open.

"The wildcard means truthful overmuch to maine and my improvement due to the fact that I consciousness that the enactment my manager and I person enactment into processing my crippled passim the twelvemonth has been recognised."

Watch Nick Kyrgios, Novak Djokovic and Iga Swiatek successful the World Tennis League successful Dubai from December 20-25. Streaming ad-free and unrecorded connected Stan Sport

Gadecki antecedently fell conscionable abbreviated of introduction past year, going down successful the 2nd circular of qualifying.

"It's thing I've dreamt of since I was a small miss and I can't hold to play with my bosom connected my sleeve successful beforehand of a location crowd," she said of the announcement.

Hijikata returns to the limelight of a large slam aft taking the opening acceptable disconnected Rafael Nadal during their archetypal circular clash astatine the US Open.

Aussie stuns Nadal by winning archetypal set

Nadal yet triumphed successful 4 sets, but then-world No.164 Hijikata gave the expansive slam titles record-holder a bully scare.

The Australian wildcards volition besides beryllium joined by Americans Caty McNally and Ben Shelton, arsenic good arsenic two-time finalist astatine the tournament, Venus Williams.

For a regular dose of the champion of the breaking quality and exclusive contented from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!