Dokic misses US Open berth despite form

(AAP) - Tennis Australia admits not granting in-form Jelena Dokic wildcard entry for the US Open was a tough call, but say they are hamstrung by strict deadlines.

Dokic is on a 15-match winning streak and has won three tournaments in the past
couple of months to lift her world ranking to 82.
But with a system in place which lacks flexibility, it wasn't enough to earn her a
wildcard for the upcoming major at Flushing Meadows, with 24 year-old Sophie
Ferguson getting the nod instead.
Australia is part of a swap agreement with the United States and France, which means
they can select a wildcard spot in the women's and men's draws at the US and French
Opens in exchange for those countries being able to decide theirs for the Australian
Open.
The US Open imposes a deadline of early to mid-July for Australia to decide on their
wildcard entries for the New York slam.
When the decision to nominate Ferguson was made, she was ranked 109 in the world,
while Dokic was in the 120s.
Head of women's tennis at Tennis Australia Craig Morris stressed world rankings
aren't the only thing taken into consideration for a wildcard, even though Dokic's
superior career record wasn't enough to give her the edge over the unheralded
Ferguson.
Morris admitted Dokic was disappointed when told of Tennis Australia's decision a
couple of weeks ago, but said she understood the strict protocol, which meant her
purple patch of form wasn't considered.
"Jelena was terrific on the phone but I'm sure there's a level of disappointment for
all players who think there may be a chance that they can get a wildcard," Morris
conceded.
"But those players have also been around the sport for a long time, they know how it
works and ultimately the best way to guarantee your spot is to get your ranking to
that point.
"The decision making process we're drawn in through the USTA was halfway through
when Jelena was having that good run ... and the selectors obviously lay out all the
pros and cons for all the players to make an educated decision.
"We believe Jelena can qualify and then get herself into the main draw and do some
damage. Sophie can use this opportunity to spring board into the top 100, and that
would give us six girls in the top 100 which is a great result for women's tennis."
The wildcard decision was also a controversial one in the men's draw, with Carsten
Ball getting the nod over rising star Bernard Tomic, despite the 17 year-old's
bumper season which saw his ranking rise from 324 to 229 since last year's US Open.
In that time, 23 year-old Ball has risen from 155 to 145, indicating that ranking is
the main factor in Australia's determining of a wildcard.