Top 20 ATP player retires suddenly from his match as concerns grow for the Australian Open

Jiri Lehecka retires from his match at the Brisbane International

Jiri Lehecka won his second ATP title at the Brisbane International last year, and he came into this year’s tournament as both the defending champion and the third seed.

The Czech made a positive start to his title defence after beating his compatriot Tomas Machac in the first round, but Lehecka was then dealt a real blow in his second round match.

After losing the first set of his match against American Sebastian Korda, Lehecka retired in just the fourth game of the second set.

Lehecka appeared to be struggling with an ankle injury after receiving a quick assessment from a medic.

This leaves the world number 19 with less than two weeks to recover in time for the Australian Open.

Jiri Lehecka’s previous results at the Australian Open

Lehecka now faces a race against time to be fit for the Australian Open, which is statistically his best Grand Slam tournament.

The Australian Open is where he reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinal in 2023, in just Lehecka’s second appearance at the Melbourne major.

Lehecka also reached the second week of the Australian Open last year, where he was beaten by 10-time champion Novak Djokovic.

It is unclear as to how severe this ankle injury is for Lehecka, who is also entered into the Adelaide International next week, where he won the title in 2024.

Lehecka’s main priority will be getting fit for the Australian Open, which gets underway on Sunday, January 18.