2021 finalist Jennifer Brady to miss 2022 Australian Open due to injury

Jennifer Brady, who reached the final of the 2021 Australian Open, is set to miss the 2022 edition due to an injury to her left foot. The season's first Grand Slam has already witnessed several high-profile players pulling out of the event due to various reasons.

Roger Federer is missing the tournament as he is still recovering from knee surgery. Serena Williams won't be playing due to injury concerns. Karolina Pliskova also announced her withdrawal due to an injury to her right hand which she sustained recently.

Bianca Andreescu is also missing the event. She has cited mental health as a major factor in her withdrawal. Jennifer Brady has now joined the growing list of absentees from the Australian Open.

In 2020, Brady reached her first Grand Slam semifinal at the US Open. A few weeks prior to that she won her first career title at the Lexington Open, defeating Jil Teichmann 6-3, 6-4.

The American started 2021 on a high note as well, reaching the semifinals of the WTA 500 in Melbourne and then reaching the biggest final of her career at the Australian Open.

Playing in her maiden Grand Slam final, Brady competed well but lost to the in-form Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-3, as the Japanese won her fourth Grand Slam title. She still reached a career-high ranking of number 13 as a result of making the final.

Jennifer Brady's injury-plagued 2021 season

Jennifer Brady at the 2021 French Open.

Unfortunately, Jennifer Brady was unable to build upon the momentum of her Australian Open run. She lost three successive matches soon after that -- in the opening rounds in Doha, Miami and Stuttgart.

She finally snapped her losing streak by reaching the third round at the Madrid Open. However, she withdrew from the Italian Open the following week prior to her second-round match due to a foot injury.

She reached the third round of Roland Garros, but had to retire from the match due to the aforementioned injury. She subsequently missed the Wimbledon Championships. Brady then made her Olympic debut in Tokyo, but lost in the first round to Camila Giorgi.

She next played at the the Cincinnati Open, but retired during her opening round match against Jelena Ostapenko. She ended her season after that to recover from a foot injury and hasn't competed since then.