British tennis player Sonay Kartal rises to national number one after injury return

Sonay Kartal has become the British number one for the first time in her career after reaching the final of the Wuhan Open in just her third tournament back from a serious back injury.

The Injury and Return

Six months ago, the 24-year-old could not stand up and brush her teeth without being in agony due to a stress fracture in her back. She spent her first month or so recovering at home in bed, often unable to walk without pain. Kartal did not return to competitive action until a little under a month ago, using a protected injury ranking because she had dropped from her previous ranking of 54th in the world achieved when the injury struck at Indian Wells in March.

Wuhan Open Success

At the Wuhan Open, a WTA 1,000 event that sits just below the Grand Slams in importance, Kartal defeated several top opponents, including current top-10 players and former Grand Slam champions. Although she lost the final to French Open runner-up Maja Chwalinska after being a set and a break up, her runner-up finish earned her 650 points. This result pushes her back above her previous ranking and near her career-high of 44th reached in July 2025 after a Wimbledon run. She also became the first British woman to reach a WTA 1,000 final since Johanna Konta in 2019, and recorded the best result by a British woman since Emma Raducanu won the US Open in 2021.

Future Outlook

Regaining her ranking just 10 matches into her comeback means Kartal will no longer need to use a protected ranking to enter tournaments like the Australian Open, giving her more freedom to manage her workload. She credited her recovery to hard work and praised her team, including coach Ben Reeves, fitness coach Ian Aylward, and physio Dani Gillanders.

Context

Protected injury rankings are a standard provision on professional tennis tours designed to help athletes re-enter competition fairly after lengthy medical absences of six months or more. Reaching the latter stages of WTA 1,000 events offers substantial ranking points and prize money, which directly influences a player's ability to enter major tournaments without relying on qualifying rounds or wildcards.