Arina Rodionova has spoken out against Tennis Australia, alleging that a grudge against her led to her being denied a wildcard entry into her home grand slam, even though she is the highest-ranked women’s player in the nation.
On Tuesday, Rodionova was defeated in the first round of Australian Open qualifying in straight sets. She expressed frustration towards the governing body for not being transparent and not awarding wildcards earlier, stating that it causes unnecessary stress for players, including herself.
In 2023, the 34-year-old made an impressive comeback from a severe wrist injury, dominating the lower-level ITF Tour. She won 78 matches and earned seven titles, which resulted in a significant rise in her ranking from No 302 to nearly breaking into the top 100.
Despite regaining her position as the top-ranked Australian player, it was rendered meaningless when the Tennis Australia organization chose to award their last discretionary wildcard to another Russian-born player, Daria Saville, on Friday.
“I only regret giving Tennis Australia a reason to celebrate today,” stated Rodionova following her defeat of 6-3, 6-4 to French player Leolia Jeanjean, who is ranked lower.
“I believe they are highly satisfied with my performance today and that is what causes my disappointment.”
Although she was the sole Australian to advance to the second round at Wimbledon in 2017, which was the country’s worst performance at the All England Club since World War II, Rodionova feels that she has been alienated by TA for over ten years.
“It all began many years ago,” the Victorian stated. “There were numerous things happening behind the scenes that made it obvious to me that I am not well-liked. And it’s not just obvious to me, but to every Australian tennis player and everyone involved.”
It’s common knowledge and somewhat amusing that their decision essentially made it known to everyone.
Rodionova has reached her highest career ranking at 105th in the world, but she was ranked 112th at the time of the Open main-draw cut-off.
Daria Saville received the last available discretionary wildcard for the main draw of the Australian Open.
Rodionova expressed uncertainty in understanding the justification behind it.
“I had an amazing year. I worked hard to earn it. They simply do not like me.”
The decision to exclude wildcard entrants has resulted in a loss of at least $94,000 for Rodionova – potentially even more if she had advanced in the Open.
However, the experienced player who typically plays from the baseline maintains that the monetary aspect is not the most important factor, although she did acknowledge that the pressure of the situation affected her performance on Tuesday.
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Rodionova stated that it was primarily about the chance rather than the actual award. She did not have a problem with not receiving it, but rather with the length of time it took for them to make a decision and their false claim of considering results from Brisbane.
“I achieved the highest outcome among the Australian women, so I doubt they took that into consideration. It seems like the decision was already made beforehand. They were not willing to award it to me, and it would have been better if they had announced it earlier because it only caused unnecessary stress for me.”
This is showing a lack of respect for the players… they should inform us at least a month in advance.
Despite being the only Australian in this century to defeat Roger Federer at a grand slam, John Millman was overlooked for a wildcard upon his retirement.
However, Millman was particularly bothered by Rodionova’s brushing.
He stated to the ABC that it is not possible to be disregarded while also being the highest-ranked female tennis player in Australia.
In addition, she achieved victory in 78 matches in the previous year. She has demonstrated an incredible dedication to hard work and winning matches, overcoming challenges along the way.
“I’m a little confused – and I won’t be remaining neutral about it.”
