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Three-time Major winner Andy Murray and former US Open champion Sam Stosur will headline the list of eight men and eight women who have received wild cards for the 2022 Australian Open, which is scheduled to begin on 17 January.
Andy Murray, ranked No. 134, narrowly missed the direct-entry cutoff for the first Grand Slam of the year. The Brit, who has finished as runner-up in Melbourne five times in his career, was subsequently handed a wildcard to play at the 2022 Australian Open earlier on Saturday due to his prolific history at the tournament.
It may be noted that Andy Murray was also a wildcard entry at the 2022 Sydney International - the final warm-up event leading up to this year's Happy Slam - after crashing out early at the Melbourne Summer Set 2022.
Sam Stosur, meanwhile, will be looking to end her singles career on a high in Melbourne. The Aussie announced last month that the 2022 Australian Open will be her final singles tournament on the WTA tour, bringing her illustrious 22-year long career to an end.
Stosur, who famously defeated Serena Williams to win the 2011 US Open, didn't have a great start to her preparations for her home Slam. She lost to China's Zhu Lin in the first round of the 2022 Gippsland Trophy.
The list of wildcard entries for the 2022 Australian Open also features 2019 Australian Open semifinalist Lucas Pouille, fast-rising Priscilla Hon and local favorites Thanasi Kokkinakis, Alex Bolt, Storm Sanders and Maddison Inglis.
Here is the full list of the eight women and men who have received a wildcard for the 2022 Australian Open:
Men's singles:
Andy Murray [GBR]
Alex Bolt [AUS]
Lucas Pouille [FRA]
Aleksandar Vukic [AUS]
Stefan Kozlov [USA]
Thanasi Kokkinakis [AUS]
Christopher O’Connell [AUS]
Chun-hsin Tseng [TW]
Women's singles:
Diane Parry [FRA]
Wang Xiyu [CHN]
Storm Sanders [AUS]
Maddison Inglis [AUS]
Robin Anderson [USA]
Priscilla Hon [AUS]
Sam Stosur [AUS]
Daria Saville [AUS]
Andy Murray not the only one trying to stage a career renaissance; Lucas Pouille also on comeback trail
Three years ago in Melbourne, Andy Murray tearfully announced his retirement before undergoing a second hip surgery to extend his career. Although the former World No. 1 has only gone from strength to strength since then, he has a long way to go before he can return to the elite rungs of the ATP.
Andy Murray, however, is not the only player to be undone by injuries in their career. Former World No. 10 Lucas Pouille was at the peak of his career at the 2019 Australian Open, where he defeated the likes of Milos Raonic and Borna Coric en-route to the semifinals (losing to eventual champion Novak Djokovic).
But the Frenchman picked up an elbow injury after his run in Melbourne, causing him to lose one match after another. In October, Pouille finally called off his season, after which he underwent surgery in 2020. Following a hiatus of nearly two years, Pouille is finally back to playing regularly, but his comeback is yet to gather steam.
