British No 1 Jo Konta fears her knee tendonitis will ‘possibly’ be with her for the rest of her career ahead of Wimbledon… as the 30-year-old admits she was not quick enough to react to the issue in 2019
- Jo Konta has revived her year after a disappointing first-round French Open exit
- The 30-year-old is on a five-match winning run and recently won a title on grass
- However, the British No 1 has said that she needs to manage her knee tendonitis
- The 28th seed says she should have addressed the issue more promptly in 2019
- Konta and Cam Norrie have to stay in a hotel despite living close to Wimbledon
- Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Stan Wawrinka are this year’s major absentees
Jo Konta fears that the knee tendonitis which has restricted her Wimbledon preparations is something she will have to manage for the remainder of her career.
The British No 1 has not played since winning the Viking Open in Nottingham at the start of the grass-court season and is sitting out the WTA event in her one-time hometown of Eastbourne this week.
Konta was formally seeded for Wimbledon on Wednesday, occupying 28th position.
Jo Konta won in Nottingham earlier this month and has revived her season before Wimbledon
However, the British No 1 fears her struggles with knee tendonitis will last her whole career
She will go to the All England Club on the back of five straight victories but with little matchplay since reigniting her season following a first-round French Open exit.
Her withdrawal from the Birmingham and Eastbourne events was precautionary — something she has been getting used to due to the tendonitis in her knee.
Konta said: ‘Will it be part of the rest of my career? Possibly. I do think I definitely have longer stretches of it being very good.
‘I wasn’t pain free for the best part of two-and-a-half years. My body didn’t feel like I should push it into the week of Eastbourne, especially being right before Wimbledon, so I took the decision to do what it feels is best for my body.’
She admitted that she was not quick enough to react to the problem during her outstanding 2019 season.
‘I didn’t really acknowledge there was something going on,’ she said. ‘It took way too long on my behalf to address it properly and by that time it was a significant thing.
Konta feels she should have addressed her knee issue more during an impressive 2019 season
‘Tendon issues, they’re not simple, they don’t follow any specific blueprint on rest, recovery, rehabilitation. It’s basically just management.
‘I know I’m doing the work, I know I’m doing the best that I can. I’m giving myself every chance to be at my best.’
Konta plans to enter the Wimbledon bubble today and has to stay in the official hotel in Westminster despite living in south-west London. Putney resident Cam Norrie has to do the same.
Rafael Nadal, Naomi Osaka and Stan Wawrinka all high-profile absentees this year at SW19
Norrie is No 30 seed for Wimbledon while Dan Evans is at 23 in tomorrow’s draw. All the seeding has come straight off the world rankings, with Novak Djokovic and Ash Barty the No 1s.
Rafael Nadal and Naomi Osaka are the two most notable absentees.
Three-time Grand Slam winner Stan Wawrinka is also out.