Anna Kalinskaya has released a statement confirming that she withdrew from the Australian Open because of health issues.
Kalinskaya, the 14th seed, was due to play Kimberly Birrell in the first round but was replaced at the 11th hour by lucky loser Eva Lys.
Last year’s quarter-finalist, who was beaten in her opening matches in warm-up tournaments Brisbane International and Adelaide International, had planned to compete in Melbourne but picked up a virus while down under.
Kalinskaya explained her very late absence on Instagram, writing: “Very sad and frustrating today to pull out from the Australian Open. I was really looking forward to it but got some virus. Health comes first.”
The Russian star’s absence will come as a double blow as she was defending significant ranking points in Melbourne. The 26-year-old is expected to drop down from her place as world No. 16.
But Kalinskaya’s loss is Lys’s gain. The German star stepped in at the last minute and defeated Birrell 6-2, 6-2 and booked her place in the second round against Varvara Gracheva.
She was defeated by Destanee Aiava in the third round of qualifying but earned another chance in Melbourne, taking it in style before detailing the few moments between hearing of her call-up and taking to the court.
“I was panicking a little bit because I didn’t really prepare my drinks,” said Lys. “I didn’t have match clothes on. So I went to the locker room, got changed straight away, and then they called my name (on court).
“So no warmup, no anything. Maybe that’s the key for next match.
“If you are a lucky loser, you don’t expect much. Your tournament is kind of over, but a lot of people around me gave me a lot of hope that there was a possibility for me to get in.
“That’s why I was here the whole day, starting off at 9am. and going back to the hotel at 11pm because you never know if someone is going to pull out. I didn’t have time to get nervous. I think that was the thing that really helped me. I had a pretty loose arm.”
Birrell, meanwhile, was left in tears during her press conference and admitted that the late change had a big effect: “It did rattle me, unfortunately.
“I put a lot of hard work and effort into this sport, and then to obviously also play some really good matches and then have a day like today is a hard pill to swallow.”