British Katie Boulter admits she feels she has to "decide between my physical condition and my world standing" as the scramble continues for a spot in the upcoming January Australian Open main draw.
While the typical WTA Tour season is finished, there are still standing points to be gained in South American nations, Argentina, various venues and France.
The women's entry list for the first Grand Slam of the upcoming season will be determined by the global standings of the December cutoff, which could create a challenging situation for athletes close to the cut.
Former British number one Boulter experienced an hip muscle in her last tournament of the year in Hong Kong last period, and is now evaluating whether to participate in the WTA 125 Challenger event in Angers, the European nation, in the first week of December.
The athlete's recent injury, and the fact she would need to achieve at least several wins in the European event to improve her ranking, means she may likely end up not participating.
In comparison, male athletes are not facing the equivalent dilemma, as for the initial instance the men's Australian Open entry list will be established from current week's rankings, which is the ATP's formal annual-final standing calculation.
The change is aimed at discouraging players from seeking ranking points during what is basically the off-season.
This season has been a difficult one for Boulter.
She achieved merely fourteen Tour-level major tournament games and currently parted ways with instructor Biljana Veselinovic after a three-year partnership in which she secured multiple WTA titles.
"Biljana is an outstanding instructor, and an extremely excellent human as well, which makes things very difficult," Boulter commented.
The quest for a different trainer is currently ongoing, searching for an individual who has elite background as Boulter maintains the belief she can be a world-class athlete.
"Progressing with a new coach, a key aspect I'm very clear on is that they are going to be an individual who has a lot of experience in how to advance to the highest echelon of this game," she stated.
"I've been positioned as elevated as 23 and I know I can get back to that level. I am not convinced my performance has gone anywhere, I believe the reliability must develop.
"My aim is not to be placed 50, forty, thirty, twenty - we've accomplished that. The goal is to be inside the elite group."
