Storm Hunter Qualifies for All Four Grand Slams
Storm Hunter walks into the US Open main draw with a statistic that sends historians to the archives and opponents on notice.
The 32-year-old has become the first active Australian player to qualify for all four grand slams, a quietly extraordinary achievement in an era of heavy schedules and early specialization. Officials had to dig deep to confirm it, underlining just how rare the feat is for any player, from any country.
She did it the hard way in New York. Very hard.
Hunter opened qualifying by knocking out compatriot and close friend Maddison Inglis, a tricky emotional hurdle in itself. Her next match pushed her to the edge: two match points saved, momentum swinging, the campaign hanging by a thread. She survived.
Then came the weather.
A 24-hour delay stalled her final qualifying round, stretching nerves and routines. When she finally returned to court, Hunter again went the distance, grinding out a third straight sudden-death victory to punch her ticket into the main draw at Flushing Meadows for the first time since 2023.
“This is the last slam on my list to tick off to get through qualies and coming in I hadn’t played many singles matches in the last few months so, yeah, it feels amazing,” she said, the significance of the milestone cutting through the understatement.
This is a late bloom that almost never happened. Hunter missed more than a year after rupturing her Achilles tendon, the kind of injury that can quietly end a career. Instead, she rebuilt, returned, and now stands in New York as a qualifier with a story and a target on her back.
The draw did her no favours.
Her “reward” is a day-one showdown with Marta Kostyuk, the 11th seed and one of the most dangerous ball-strikers on tour, fresh off semifinal runs at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Few players in the women’s game are hitting as big or riding as much confidence as the Ukrainian.
“Yeah, it’s tough,” Hunter admitted, without flinching.
“She’s obviously having a really good year. She’s a great player, very physical with the way she plays and a really good competitor.”
On paper, it is a mismatch: a former world No.1 doubles specialist, short on recent singles matches, against a top-15 seed in full flight. On court, Hunter believes the pressure tilts the other way.
“So it’s going to be tough. Obviously a very quick turnaround from playing qualifiers to my first round tomorrow, but I’m feeling good and she’s the one who’s under all the pressure to play against me and I have practised with her before.
I know what her level is and I know it’s going to be a challenge, but I’m up for a challenge. It’s going to be fun. I’m going to enjoy it.”
That word — enjoy — carries weight for someone who has spent long stretches wondering if she would ever compete at this level again.
“There’s been lots of times in my career I didn’t think I’d be back playing at this level, so to be back in the main draw of a slam is awesome, and I’m just going to go out and enjoy it and give it a good crack.”
Hunter is one of six Australians on court on Monday, part of a quietly sizeable contingent trying to make early inroads in New York.
- Kim Birrell faces Petra Marcinko, while Talia Gibson also meets Croatian opposition in seasoned campaigner Donna Vekic.
- Rising talent Taylah Preston takes on American Alycia Parks in a clash that should test both nerve and firepower.
On the men’s side, Adam Walton opens against China’s Yibing Wu, and Aleksandar Vukic meets Japan’s Rei Sakamoto, the only Australian men in first-round action on day one.
Sixth seed Alex de Minaur, the standard-bearer of the group, begins his campaign on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST), carrying the expectations of a nation that senses his window is wide open.
For now, though, the most unlikely Australian headline belongs to Storm Hunter — a qualifier with a rare record, a rebuilt body, and one of the toughest first-round assignments in the draw. Exactly the kind of stage she has spent years fighting to reach.
