"Angelique Kerber having the floppiest comeback among all the comebacks" - Fans react as German's poor run of form in 2024 continues at Linz Open

Angelique Kerber's return to tennis hasn't gone completely according to plan. She suffered another disappointing first-round defeat at the Linz Open on Tuesday, January 30.

Kerber spent 18 months on the sidelines after announcing her pregnancy. She welcomed her daughter Liana in February last year.

Kerber returned to action at the 2024 United Cup in Sydney. Despite winning just one out of her four singles matches, Kerber, alongside World No.7 Alexander Zverev, lifted Germany's first-ever United Cup trophy.

Her subsequent Australian Open campaign was also cut short on the back of a three-set defeat to Danielle Collins in the first round.

At the Linz Open in Austria that began earlier this week, she suffered another disappointing first-round loss, this time at the hands of the 58th-ranked Lucia Bronzetti of Italy. The less experienced Italian blew her off the court, winning 6-1, 6-3.

Following her defeat, Kerber received scathing criticism for her recent run of form from fans online. One fan suggested that her comeback was amongst the "floppiest."

"Ohh angie having the floppiest comeback among all the comebacks," the user wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

Another fan suggested that it was probably time for the German to retire.

"Hang it up," they wrote.

A third suggested that she was just "embarrassing" herself at this point with performances like these.

"Kerber just embarrassing herself damn," the user posted.

Another argued that former players should forget about successful comebacks.

"This is the problem for older players they think can reclaim their glory days. The truth is most comebacks not successful," the user wrote.

Here are a few more reactions to her defeat:

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Angelique Kerber struggling to gain a foothold in 2024

Angelique Kerber during her match against Danielle Collins at the 2024 Australian Open - Getty Images

Angelique Kerber has won just one of her six singles matches so far since her 18-month hiatus. Despite winning the mixed team event title at the United Cup, Kerber is yet to rediscover the form that saw her clinch three Grand Slam titles in the past.

While most of her defeats this year have come against top 20 players, her most recent defeat to Lucia Bronzetti at the Linz Open was unexpected. She was defeated in just 62 minutes, losing in straight sets to the 25-year-old Italian.