Former world number three Nadia Petrova has pulled out of next month’s Australian Open following the death of her mother in a car crash.
Petrova’s mother,
, was an athlete who won bronze in the 4x400m relay at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal.
Fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko, world ranked 19, has pulled out with injury.
Petrova’s withdrawal means 26-year-old Bulgarian Tsvetana Pironkova, who is ranked 108 in the world, moves into the main draw.
