By: Amy Jin
Although the greatest achievements in life did eventually come, it wasn’t that simple for Jennifer Brady.
Brady is a professional tennis player born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. She went to UCLA for college and started her tennis career at age 15.
For the first time, Brady had real success. In the 2020 U.S. Open, she reached the semifinals despite the extreme health measures and the empty court with no spectators (since it was on the brink of the pandemic).
Four months later, she reinforced this achievement by making it into the finals of the Australian Open, but not before spending two months in quarantine. Despite her confinement, she made her room stimulate the conditions of the tournament, and she practiced by smacking tennis balls on a mattress.
Brady’s run was extraordinary, and it put her on the top ten list for singles rankings. However, as the pandemic slowly came to a halt and tennis slowly became normal again, she was nowhere to be found on tours.
During the two years of the extreme Covid-19 pandemic, she had a knee disability and a long-term foot condition. The two injuries combined sometimes got her into a “very dark place,” making her wish that she could somehow remove her foot.
Nevertheless, she attended a tournament in Granby, Quebec, and won a round before losing to Himeno Sakatsume (a Japanese player ranked 223) in straight sets.
In an interview with Granby, Brady says, “It was unbelievable, just being out there…Just engaging and just having a crowd there, and people enjoying good tennis. I definitely missed this. I didn’t think I would be as comfortable as I was. I’m happy I was able to show people that I’m still here.”
Later, Brady plans to go to the WTC Tour in Washington, D.C., for the D.C. Open.
“Lots of Opportunity”
Even as a young child, Brady was considered a promising player. She had planned to return to the French Open in May before feeling a bone bruise in her right foot and quitting the trip.
As she comes back to play, she senses an opening. She states, “The women’s game right now, it seems like anybody can win a Grand Slam tournament…It seems like there’s a lot of opportunity.” (The New York Times)
Brady no longer has a personal trainer. Instead, she travels with her therapist and is trained by Ola Malmqvist, the head of women’s tennis at U.S.T.A.
Malmqvist says, “I just really, really wish that she gets the chance to put her feet into everything again and see what happens…I think in her mind she definitely feels she can compete with the very best, and I hope she can stay healthy enough and practice enough.”
Training “Smarter Instead of Harder”
In late 2019, Brady started training in Germany with her coach, Michael Geserer, who pushed her hard. After losing to Naomi Osaka in the Australian Open Finals of 2021, she moved on to the tournament in Doha, Qatar, without enjoying it. Brady states, “I just didn’t want to be there…Mentally, I was absolutely fried.”
She had been feeling foot pains before this, but when she woke up in the middle of the night before the Miami Opens, she felt a stab in the sole of her foot.
It turns out Brady had plantar fasciitis (an infection in the tissue used for foot movement and walking). She continued on, but eventually, after a match, she said that she “couldn’t walk.”
Brady then stopped training with Geserer and says, “It was just a little too much.”
“She skipped the grass-court season, received a cortisone injection and a platelet-rich plasma injection in her foot but lost in the first round at the Tokyo Olympics and returned to the U.S. to try to get ready for the 2021 U.S. Open.” (The New York Times)
Brady played the Western and Southern Opens with excruciating pain, and during the tournament, she started feeling pain in her right knee.
She discovered that she had a fracture in her right knee and would soon find out that her left plantar fascia had a tear. She quit the U.S. Open and had right knee surgery in May.
Money and Medical Bills
Now, the medical bills are stacking up for Brady. She has earned over $4.6 million in prize money, but she doesn’t want to spend it all.
“When can I start doing my job?” She asks.
The answer is today.
Credits: The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/29/sports/tennis/jennifer-brady-citi-open.html
WTA Tennis
https://www.wtatennis.com/players/318358/jennifer-brady
ESPN
https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/30926875/jennifer-brady-carved-own-path-australian-open-final
Tennis Majors