"Very sad and frustrating": Anna Kalinskaya opens up about last-minute Australian Open withdrawal

World No. 14 Anna Kalinskaya was set to face Aussie No. 1 Kimberly Birrell, but had to cancel her participation just minutes before stepping onto the court due to health complications.

In her place, lucky loser Eva Lys stepped up to the court, revealing that she was notified only five minutes before the match and had to rush to change clothes and be ready in time. The young German player secured a victory over the local star.

Health concerns force Kalinskaya to withdraw

Kalinskaya’s withdrawal marks the first top-15 exit of the tournament, although she never even took to the court. The Russian was defending a significant amount of points after reaching the quarterfinals in 2024, meaning a drop in the rankings, and possibly falling out of the top 20 by the end of the Australian Open.

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Until yesterday, there had been doubts about what had happened with Kalinskaya and whether her exit was due to physical issues. The 26-year-old player shared a story on Instagram explaining her last-minute absence: “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,” she wrote.

While Kalinskaya had to lament her exit, it was a good opportunity for lucky loser Eva Lys, who had spent the entire day at Melbourne Park, hoping for a last-minute withdrawal. She had almost given up hope of playing. However, when Kalinskaya pulled out, Lys was notified with just minutes to prepare for her match against the highest-ranked local player at the time.

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“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),” Eva Lys added. “So no warmup, no anything. Maybe that’s the key for next match.”

The 23-year-old German managed to score an impressive 6-2, 6-2 win and advanced to the second round, where she will face French player Varvara Gracheva.

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