Today’s News: Jennifer Capriati will not play at the 2006 Australian Open; Monica Seles contemplating a return to the tour; Jelena Dokic will face a tough foe for entry into the Australian Open main draw; BBC’s explanation of why so many of the top women are missing in action
Jennifer Capriati will not play at the 2006 Australian Open
According to the Sydney Morning Herald (see second to last paragraph), we will not see former No.1 Jennifer Capriati in action at the Australian Open. Capriati has not played a WTA match since November of 2004. Rumors had suggested that she would attempt another comeback, but the exact time and location is still unknown.
At this point, there has been NO official word to the mainstream media from Capriati’s camp or the Australian Open officials that the former AO champion will be accepting a wildcard into the 2006 tournament.
January 23 Update – Jennifer Capriati has told Tennis Week that any rumors that she will return in Miami at the Nasdaq-100 Open are false, and although she still plans on making a comeback, she has not decided upon a time or location.
Monica Seles contemplating a return to the Tour
Another former No.1 is considering a comeback of her own. Monica Seles, the nine-time Grand Slam champion, has said that she is contemplating returning to play on the women’s tour. Although she has been off the tour since the 2003 French Open, she has not officially retired.
Seles has confirmed that if she does decide to come back to the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, she will only play selective events and not a complete schedule. She did admit that if she does not make a comeback by the end of 2006, she will most likely retire from professional tennis.
Jelena Dokic will face a tough foe for entry into the Australian Open main draw
Unfortunately for Jelena Dokic, the road to the Australian Open just got a whole lot harder. The returning tennis star has drawn Beti Sekulovski in the opening round of the wildcard play-off. Sekulovski is ranked higher than Dokic and will not be an easy foe. Should Dokic defeat Sekulovski, she will still have to defeat three additional players before obtaining the wildcard into the main draw.
BBC’s explanation of why so many of the top women are missing in action
The British Broadcasting Company has an excellent article today on why so many of the top women have suffered from injuries this season. Case studies include Maria Sharapova, Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin-Hardenne, and Venus & Serena Williams.
