The Australian Open has seen some big results and surprises already at this year’s tournament.
There have been some routine victories for players including Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, while other top seeds like Felix Auger-Aliassime are already out of the Australian Open.
This is not just exclusive to the men’s singles draw, with two-time Grand Slam champion Barbora Krejcikova also out of the Australian Open.
There have also been some signs of resurgence at the Australian Open this year, with former semifinalist Magda Linette winning her first Grand Slam match since 2023, and now a former world number one has achieved a similar feat.
Karolina Pliskova wins her first Grand Slam match since 2024
Karolina Pliskova is a former world number one and has previously reached two Grand Slam finals.
However, after Pliskova underwent ankle surgery after suffering an injury at the 2024 US Open, she was out of action for over a year.
The 33-year-old ended her absence from the tour at a WTA 125 event in Portugal, where Pliskova won her first match in nearly 13 months.
Despite making a winning comeback, Pliskova only played two more matches in 2025 and there were some doubts over her future.
The Czech had confirmed her intention to return to Grand Slam tennis, but concerns grew over Pliskova’s Australian Open participation after she withdrew from tournaments in Brisbane and Adelaide.
Although there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding Pliskova, she still appeared in the draw where she was set to face former US Open champion Sloane Stephens, who ended her 13-match losing streak in Australian Open qualifying.
Both players have previously been inside the top five in the world, but after struggling with injury over the past year, they had a combined ranking of 2159 coming into the first round match.
Despite all of these factors coming into the match, Pliskova was able to beat Stephens, 7-6(7) 6-2, to win her first Grand Slam match since the 2024 US Open.
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Pliskova has been the top ranked player on the WTA Tour before, being the world number one for eight weeks in 2017.
However, after dropping outside the top 1000 in the rankings, Pliskova has been required to use a protected ranking to enter the Australian Open.
The former Australian Open semifinalist has already made a positive start in her bid to climb back up the rankings, with Pliskova gaining 70 ranking points for reaching the second round.
This means that Pliskova is already confirmed to return to the top 600 in the WTA rankings regardless of what happens in her next match.
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Pliskova will now look to continue her resurgence in her second round match against Indonesian Janice Tjen, who won her first WTA title last year, and whom she will play on Thursday, January 22.
If she is able to beat Tjen, then Pliskova will be on the verge of returning to the top 400 in the WTA rankings.
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