The 2026 Australian Open commences a week from now and two players on the women’s side have withdrawn over the last 48 hours. According to the WTA Tour, China’s Qinwen Zheng and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova announced their absences. Zheng had elbow surgery last summer which forced her to miss the 2025 United States Open. Kudermetova is citing “physical discomfort” according to puntodebreak.com.
Zheng is ranked 24th in the world, and is best known for her 2024 season. In this calendar year, she reached the final of the Australian Open, and won the gold medal in women’s singles at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Kudermetova is currently ranked 30th in the world. She has won two WTA titles, with both being at the 500 point level. She won the 2021 Charleston Open by beating Danka Kovinic of Montenegro 6-4, 6-2, and then the 2023 Pan Pacific Open in Japan by beating Jessica Pegula of the United States, 7-5, 6-1.
Meanwhile, in the 2026 United Cup in Sydney, the semifinalists have been set for Saturday. The United States will play Poland, and Switzerland will play Belgium.
Poland is the country who eliminated the host nation of Australia in the quarterfinals. In the deciding mixed doubles match, the Polish duo of Katarzyna Kaja and Jan Zielinski trounced Australia’s Storm Hunter and John-Patrick Smith, 6-4, 6-0. Meanwhile, Elise Mertens, who has had doubles success in the past with Kudermetova, beat Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic, 5-7, 6-1, 7-5 to clinch a semifinal spot. It is interesting that the Czech Republic proceeded to play Belgium in a mixed doubles match when it did not matter.
