Kartal was riding the crest of a wave in the early part of the season, having broken into the world’s top 50, reached two WTA quarter-finals and recorded notable wins over top-class opponents.

Victories over 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys and former world number eight Emma Navarro in Indian Wells led to a meeting with now world number one Elena Rybakina in the fourth round.

However, Kartal was forced to retire with the back injury which proved more serious than first thought.

After initially hoping she would make a quick recovery, the pain left Kartal unable to brush her teeth without “being in agony” and led to some difficult decisions.

Missing Wimbledon was a particularly tough choice, especially given she reached the fourth round of her home Grand Slam in 2025, but resigning herself to the fact she could not rush a comeback has proved to be a wise decision.

Her first match back a little over three weeks ago – representing Great Britain at the BJK Cup – ended in a narrow defeat, before she won two matches to reach the Beijing third round in her WTA Tour return.

“At the BJK Cup, the level I produced was much higher than I thought and I left super happy,” Kartal said.

“Now I’m growing in confidence with every match I’m playing.”