British tennis star Sonay Kartal ‘feeling good’ & starting afresh after long injury spell
• 4 minute read
At the start of the 2026 season, things were falling into place for British tennis star Sonay Kartal.
Off the back of a fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon and a first WTA 1000 quarter-final in Beijing, Kartal got this year off to a flying start with quarter-final runs in Auckland and Abu Dhabi.
Kartal made an impressive start to her campaign at Indian Wells, beating 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys and former top-10 star Emma Navarro to reach the fourth round.
However, the British star was forced to retire during her match against Elena Rybakina with a back injury. At the time, Kartal had been hoping to get back on court as soon as she could, but little did she know that the road ahead would be longer and tougher than expected.
A pars stress fracture left her out of action for six months – missing three of the four Grand Slams, including her home event at Wimbledon.
Now with all that behind her and after months of hard work, the 24-year-old is gearing up to make her return at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Shenzhen.
“For me, there was no better way to do it (returning from injury at the Billie Jean King Cup),” Kartal said in our exclusive interview. “It’s one of my favourite weeks of the year. I love the team atmosphere, the team events, spending time with the girls. It’s such a unique event. It’s going to be a great week.
“I’m feeling good. Mentally, physically, I’m in a very good place. I’m ready to get going now; it’s been a while."
Six months away from the sport is a long time for any athlete, but in an individual sport like tennis, it can be especially tough.
It’s a lot of long days in recovery rooms and in the gym, all while being unable to get on court and play at her maximum level.
However, Kartal has taken it all in her stride, got her head down, worked hard and now believes she will be all the better for it.
“I just missed everything there is about playing the sport,” she said. “I missed that feeling of working hard and knowing you’ve put in a shift that day. Just the feeling of being on a tennis court and doing what I do best. Getting back to my job.
“It’s been a long process. The first three months were slow, with not many changes. I was stumped a bit and didn’t feel like I was going in the right direction. Then, all of a sudden, I really started to rocket upwards, and everything has been smooth sailing for the last few months.
“It was my first one (injury). Missing three of the four Slams was incredibly tough. Missing a home Slam was incredibly tough. Being an individual sport, if I’m not on a tennis court, I’m not working. I’m not earning.
“Tennis is all I’ve known. I’ve done it every day for the last 18 years. Not being able to do that and feeling like I couldn’t do the basics like brushing my teeth without standing up and being in agony – it was a tough injury.
“It’s made me a stronger person, a better person and hopefully it will make me a better tennis player.”
Kartal’s form prior to the injury should give her plenty of reason for confidence heading into the back end of the season, but for the British star, it almost feels like starting anew.
After several months training at the National Tennis Centre, Kartal is now set up to play a lot of matches before the end of the season, when many players might be looking to wind down.
“At the time, I was feeling really good, getting some good wins and playing some great tennis,” Kartal reflected on her start to the 2026 season. “Things were developing nicely from the practice court to the match court.
“It was definitely not the best thing that could have happened (the injury), but you have to find the positives in the negatives. I’ve taken this time to also focus on other things with my body that I wouldn’t have had time to do before.
“I think I’ve put the start of the year to one side and I’m starting fresh from now.
“I’m still going to be the same person, just hopefully a better version. Hopefully I’m a better tennis player, a stronger tennis player.
“I’ll be doing the Asian swing, then seeing if I can play a few tournaments in December. I’m doing my season a little back to front. I’m hoping I can finish the year, around Christmas, feeling like the player I was when I had to stop, so I can go into next year as if this hasn’t happened and hasn’t affected my tennis.”
Kartal’s first stop will be in Shenzhen, where she will join Katie Boulter, Harriet Dart, Mika Stojsavljevic and Jodie Burrage in captain Anne Keothavong’s side for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.
She made an impressive start to her Billie Jean King Cup career last year, winning both her singles rubbers in the Qualifiers and going on to claim a victory in GB’s quarter-final win over Japan.
For Kartal, a return at the Billie Jean King Cup always felt like a target and she’s excited to be a part of a squad that has made the semi-finals in three of the last four seasons.
“She (Anne Keothavong) left it up to me to decide, and said that if I felt like I was good to go and was fit and healthy, she wanted me in the team.”
“I took some time, decided, and it’s the way I wanted to come back into it. I want this week with the girls as my first week of tennis. I’ve been sidelined for six months and it’s going to be fun to be in that environment.
“Playing that first tie in the Netherlands, I remember people saying, ‘You’ll never forget the nerves of that first tie.’ Those matches mean more to you than others. You want to do well for your country and for the girls.
“They are truly special weeks. In Shenzhen, I was much better, nerves-wise. You just have to get that first tie out of the way, and then it’s smooth sailing from there. I loved every second of those matches, and this year I hope we can go one step further.”
Kartal and the Great Britain team will face Czechia in the Billie Jean King Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday 23 September from 10:00.
