Northern Marianas' Carol Lee to take another crack at Australian Open

Northern Mariana Islands tennis star Carol Lee will spend December training in Germany as she prepares for another crack at making the main draw of the Australian Open in January.

The 24-year-old from Saipan is coming off a breakthrough season that saw her make her Grand Slam main-draw debut at the US Open and win her maiden WTA 125 singles title at the Polish Open in Warsaw.

Lee, currently ranked 156th in the world, fell just one win short of making the main draw in Melbourne earlier this year.

She will hold her pre-season training at the T2 Academy in Germany, where she will be joined by her father for part of her preparations.

"I am excited for my preseason training because I would be working on many different areas that needs to be improved and developed so that I can raise my level and be prepared for AO and the 2027 full season," Lee said.

"There will be many challenges coming up and I will be ready to accept them all and see my progress in tournaments next year."

Lee wrapped up her latest tournament campaign with a runner-up finish at the ITF W75 River City Challenger in Brisbane on 15 November, losing to Taiwan's Joanna Garland 7-5, 1-6, 2-6 in a match that lasted two hours and 24 minutes.

She previously competed in the main draws of the Guangzhou Open and Hong Kong Tennis Open, losing to former world No. 2 Paula Badosa of Spain and former world No. 3 Maria Sakkari of Greece, respectively.

The former Georgia Tech All-American reached a career-high world ranking of No. 136 in September, according to the Women's Tennis Association.

In January, Lee defeated Belgium's Hanne Vandewinkel and Australia's Elena Micic in the first two rounds of Australian Open qualifying before losing to Czech player Linda Fruhvirtova 7-5, 2-6, 4-6 in the final round.

Melbourne holds special significance for Lee, who in 2019 became the first tennis player from the Northern Mariana Islands to compete in a junior Grand Slam tournament when she played in the Australian Open girls' singles.

Lee represents the United States on the professional tour but plays for Pacific Oceania in the Billie Jean King Cup, where she has compiled a 16-3 record.

She also thanked her sponsors Head, Brabu Behavioral Health, and Voltys for supporting her throughout the season.