‘I didn’t know how much fight I had’ – why GB’s Burrage almost quit tennis

Australian Open 2025

Dates: 12-26 January Venue: Melbourne Park

Jodie Burrage, a British athlete, claims she nearly gave up on the sport last year as a result of yet another serious injury setback.

Burrage, who also thought about quitting the sport in 2020 after a series of injuries, missed six months of the 2024 season with wrist and ankle issues.

The 26-year-old, who made her comeback on the lower-tier ITF Futures Tour, cried during a training session and questioned whether the hardship was worthwhile.

“I was basically crying mid-session, saying I don’t know how much more fight I’ve got”, an emotional Burrage said.

“I worked so hard to get to a position where I could even play the sport,” he said. “I wasn’t happy with how I was playing.”

When Burrage needed surgery to repair a snapped wrist tendon, she was at a career-high of 84th in the world rankings in February.

But as she prepared to resume competitive action in April, she suffered yet another blow.

Katie Boulter, the British no. 1, and Burrage broke an ankle ligament during a practice session, which she did not need to have removed. Burrage then missed another 10 weeks.

Before the heartbreaking incident in November when she questioned her future while practicing at the National Tennis Centre, she finally made a comeback in September at a WTA event in Monastir.

It was a sliding doors moment. The battle continued between Bangalore. She won the trophy in Dubai immediately after reaching the final of a Futures competition in Slovakia a week later.

Burrage, who is competing in Melbourne in the first round against French qualifier Leolia Jeanjean, said, “that’s the funny thing about tennis.”

“Literally five days later, I started in Slovakia, made the final and then I win the biggest title of my career in Dubai.

” It was very up and down. Those six months were really, really hard. “

Asked what stopped her quitting, she said:” For some reason, I love this crazy sport. That’s what kept me going.

“The fight, being here]in Melbourne], working hard, working towards something.