Canadian tennis star Carson Branstine is missing from the list of players who’ll be competing at Wimbledon this year. The American-born player turned professional in 2024 and made her Wimbledon debut last year, making a brilliant impression, defeating former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu in qualifying, and earning her place in her first Grand Slam main draw.
Hailed as Wimbledon’s ‘most beautiful debutant’, she was pitted against the World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka and delivered a gritty performance. After losing the first set 6-1, she made a strong comeback before eventually falling 5-7 to bow out of the tournament.
She hasn’t played any tennis since picking up an injury at the Australian Open qualification earlier this year.
Related News |
From Driver In Uber Eats To Wimbledon
Last year, when she made it to the main circuit, Carson shed light on the financial struggles of the lower-ranked WTA players. She revealed that her modelling career, which has seen her collaborate with numerous fashion, fitness and skincare brands, helped her sporting ambitions. Carson even had to work as a driver for Uber Eats during her transition from college circuit to professional tennis to support herself.
She told Telegraf.rs: “When you play ITF tournaments and finance your own life as a young athlete, everything is very expensive. I live in Southern California, and just filling up the tank was seriously draining my bill.
“I remember one morning, a couple of weeks before I played my first WTA final in Cancun, I looked at my account balance and only had $26 (£19). I thought about how I’m going to finance myself for the tournament now.
Related News |
“I cried. I called my friends, but I wasn’t allowed to call my parents. If they found out, they would be very angry. I just said to myself, ‘Don’t think too much. Do it.’ And so after training, I drove around Los Angeles and delivered dinners to people.”
After making the main draw of Wimbledon last year, she earned around £66,000 (INR 8,234,292.00 approx), which helped her gain some financial stability. Still, Branstine continues to model, saying she really loves being in front of the camera. She added: “I love being in front of the camera during a shoot.
“It’s fun, I love fashion. It’s been one of the reasons I’ve been able to pay for some of my trips. I didn’t want to ask my parents for anything. I wanted everything to come from me and from my tennis.
“I wasn’t signed by these agencies because of my tennis; it was for my look. Modelling and tennis are weirdly similar; you are an object a lot, and people sometimes forget you’re a person too.”