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Britain's Katie Boulter states she believes she has to "decide between my physical health and my professional position" as the scramble persists for a spot in next January's Australian Open main draw.

While the regular WTA Tour season is over, there are still standing points to be won in Chile, regional locations, multiple sites and international tournaments.

The women's participant roster for the initial Grand Slam of the 2026 season will be based on the world rankings of the December cutoff, which could cause a challenging situation for competitors near the cut.

Physical Setbacks

Previous British top-ranked player Boulter experienced an abductor in her concluding competition of the year in Hong Kong last month, and is now weighing up whether to compete in the WTA 125 secondary tournament in European venues, the European nation, in the opening days of December.

The athlete's recent injury, and the fact she would need to secure at least several wins in the European event to enhance her position, means she may likely eventually not participating.

Different Systems

In comparison, male athletes are not experiencing the identical situation, as for the premier occasion the men's Australian Open competitor lineup will be established from current week's standings, which is the ATP's standard year-end position determination.

The change is intended to preventing athletes from chasing position points during what is essentially the off-season.

Coaching Changes

This year has been a challenging one for Boulter.

She won only 14 elite main-draw matches and lately separated with coach Biljana Veselinovic after a lengthy collaboration in which she secured three WTA championships.

"Biljana is an outstanding trainer, and an extremely excellent individual as well, which creates situations particularly challenging," Boulter said.

The search for a new coach is currently ongoing, seeking a professional who has high-level background as Boulter maintains the belief she can be a top-20 athlete.

Professional Aspirations

"Going forward with a new coach, one thing I'm absolutely certain on is that they are going to be a professional who has a lot of experience in how to make it to the very top level of this profession," she said.

"I've been placed as elevated as twenty-three and I am confident I can get back to that level. I don't think my performance has gone anywhere, I believe the steadiness should develop.

"My aim is not to be placed fifty, forty, thirty, twenty - we've been there. The objective is to be among the top twenty."