Katie Boulter misses out on a place in the main draw of the Australian Open

Former British number one Katie Boulter has missed out on a place in the main draw for the Australian Open.

There are 104 players who have received direct entry into the Melbourne draw, including those with protected rankings, with Boulter currently ranked 106.

The 29-year-old will now have to go through qualifying at Melbourne Park in January for the first Grand Slam of 2026.

Boulter had the opportunity to earn extra ranking points in the WTA 125 challenger event in France last week but opted not to play after sustaining a hip injury in Hong Kong in October.

She told BBC Sport in November that she had to “choose between my body and my ranking” when weighing up whether to play to improve her ranking.

“If there are tournaments there, it gives you an opportunity because you want to make the main draw of Australia,” she said at the time.

“I think I know my own right choice, but it’s difficult because it means that everyone else is going to be playing and passing me.”

Boulter has won just 14 Tour-level main-draw matches this year and recently split with coach Biljana Veselinovic after a three-year partnership in which she won three WTA titles.

Emma Raducanu, Sonay Kartal and Francesca Jones all received direct entry into the main draw – along with Jack Draper, Cameron Norrie and Jacob Fearnley.