Michalla Krajicek was included in the Netherlands squad for the FIFA World Cup by national coach Ewan Watson on Thursday. The former tennis player is one of eight women on the selection team.
33-year-old Krajicek started Padel this year and quickly made his way to second in the Netherlands. She is currently number four in the rankings.
Two years ago, Krajicek had to end her career as a professional tennis player. She played her last match at the beginning of 2019 and after that she struggled a lot with her knee.
As a tennis star, Krajicek had a promising start in her career. She won three WTA Championships in 2005 and 2006 as a teenager and faltered in 2007 with a place in the Wimbledon quarter-finals. After that, he went down a slope mainly due to injuries.
In addition to Krajicek, the Dutch Women’s World Cup selection in Padel consists of Steffie Weterings, Marcella Koek, Tess van Dinteren, Maaike Betz, Milou Ettekoven, Rosalie van der Hoek and Avalon Segou Jonker.
For men, the Dutch group consists of Sten Richters, Bram Meijer, Uriël Maarsen, Robin Sietsma, René Lindenbergh, Bart van Opstal, Werner Lootsma and Menno Nolten.
The World Cup will be held at Padel in Dubai from October 31 to November 5. The Dutch women’s team qualified directly, as it ranked ninth last year. The Dutch men qualified through the European qualifiers.
Last year, Spain claimed the world title in both the men’s and women’s races. The Padel World Championship was first decided in 1992.
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