Interview
“It took a lot of strength to come back” - Jodie Burrage on her return from injury and season so far
The past 12 months have been challenging for British tennis star Jodie Burrage, who was forced to battle through injuries that kept her out for six months of the 2024 season.
Despite the setbacks, the resilient Brit has displayed remarkable determination to get back to competitive action and has shown promising signs of getting back to her best in the early stages of this season.
After what has been a whirlwind year for the Burrage, we caught up with her at the Billie Jean King Cup to talk about her journey back from injury, her spirited start to the season and her ambitions for the rest of 2025.
Last February, Burrage was sitting comfortably at a career-high ranking of world No.84 and playing some of the best tennis of her career before she underwent surgery on a snapped tendon in her wrist.
The Brit was preparing to make her return to competitive action in April but suffered yet another setback as she ruptured an ankle ligament in a practice session on the clay with fellow Brit Katie Boulter - resulting in another 10 weeks away from the court.
The 25-year-old went on to make her comeback in September at a WTA event in Monastir before rounding off the year by lifting the biggest title of her career at a W100 event in Dubai.
“Last year was really hard for me,” Burrage said. “I had seven months out and there were times where I didn’t think I’d get back to that level. It took me a few tournaments to get going which I knew it would.
“Dubai sort of came out of nowhere, I had a really good week in Slovakia the week before and just trusted myself, went out there with an open mind. I kinda just said I was going out on holiday to be honest and ended up winning the tournament. It just shows that when I’m happy and relaxed, it brings out the best in me.
“I’ve been out (of the game) a few times - that was my fourth operation and I did my ankle again.
"This time was a lot longer and I really felt missing a grass court season so I can’t wait to have a very relaxed perspective going into the next one because I’m so happy to be there first and foremost and the tennis will come after that.
“I was just trying to get back on court and that’s what kept me going at that time. A lot of blood, sweat and tears but we’re back and hopefully that’s the last time I have to do that.”
After ending last year on a high, Burrage made an fast start to the 2025 season - clinching a career-first main draw victory at the Australian Open against Leolia Jeanjean to set up a second round clash against world No.4 Coco Gauff.
Despite coming out on the losing side of that match, Burrage savoured the experience of going toe-to-toe against one of the world’s best players and took plenty away from her time competing on the Rod Laver Arena.
But she didn’t stop there - since January, Burrage has continued to build momentum and went on to earn wins at the Transylvania Open, AXT Open - where she beat former Grand Slam champion Petra Kvitova - and Puerto Vallarta Open.
“I love Australia and I played some really good tennis there - that match against Coco (Gauff) gave me a lot of confidence.
"Beating Kvitova in Austin - I’m getting these great experiences again and that’s what I missed when I was out for six, seven months.
“They were two great matches and I’ve definitely been drawing on things I did well on in those but there’s also a lot that I wanted to improve on and I’m glad because it proves I can go further than where I’m at.
“It was great to be a part of those atmospheres and to play in front of those crowds and hold my own against those type of players.”
The British No.6 is now focused on having a strong run throughout the rest of the season.
Last week, Burrage joined up with the Lexus GB Billie Jean King Cup team for the 2025 Qualifiers against Germany and the Netherlands.
There, she recorded her first win for her country alongside Boulter in the deciding doubles rubber against Dutch pair Demi Schuurs and Suzan Lamens to book the Brits spot to the Finals in Shenzhen.
Now, Burrage will turn her attention to the clay and grass court seasons - but what other goals does she have her sights set on for the rest of the year?
“Just staying on court”, Burrage said. “I’m going to give the clay court season a stab and then hopefully have a fun grass court season. That’s what I can’t wait for at the moment - playing in front of a home crowd again, I really missed that last year.
“I’m just trying to build my ranking back up, I think I’m at 175 (in the world) now. I’ve got a goal of trying to get into the US Open main draw right now - it’s going to be a pretty tough goal but I believe I can do it and we’ll see what happens.”