‘How is this possible?’ – British tennis star left furious as rackets are ‘destroyed’
British tennis player Olivia Nicholls was angered after an airline charged her to check in rackets before they arrived damaged upon delivery.
The No.1 ranked British female doubles player travelled to Hobart, Australia, for the Hobart International tournament, which begins on Monday.
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Nicholls played alongside Emma Raducanu at the Billie Jean King Cup last year
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Professional tennis rackets can cost hundreds of pounds to replaceShe brought three rackets in a carry case but airline Jetstar refused to qualify her equipment as carry-on luggage.
Nicholls had to pay £80 ($160 AUD) to check in her bag but the worst of her troubles were yet to come.
Upon receiving her items she noticed the bag was ripped up and the rackets were significantly damaged.
“This is unacceptable,” Nicholls wrote on X. “160 AUD to check in because I’m not allowed to take it as carry one, and you deliver my bag like this? How is this possible? My bag and rackets are totally destroyed.”
Fans were quick to express their sympathy for Nicholls, with one saying: “Disgraceful but not surprising. Jetstar is a shocking airline.”
Another person detailed a similar story, saying: “This happened to our daughter on Qantas. She was travelling to NZ [New Zealand] for an international tournament, so they made her check the bag in… When she received them they were all broken.”
“You should sue for loss of income if you can’t compete,” claimed one fan.
And a final user joked: “Wow it’s not easy to break a racket. They must have really tried hard!”
Nicholls made her WTA Tour debut at the Lyon Open in 2022.
The 30-year-old is currently ranked no.39 in women’s doubles, one place behind her career high attained last year.
Most recently, she took part in the United Cup for Great Britain, who were knocked out by Poland in the semi-finals.
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Nicholls also claimed the British No.1 doubles spot in August 2024Nicholls and Charles Broom lost against Maja Chwalinska and Jan Zielinski 6-2, 7-6(3).
Last year at Wimbledon, she reached the third round with Slovakian Tereza Mihalikova but lost to Ukrainian Lyudmyla Kichenok and Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko.
In 2023 she took part in the Wimbledon mixed doubles alongside Jonny O’Mara, making it all the way to the semi-finals.
Her and Mihalikova are scheduled to face Kimberely Zimmermann and Quinn Gleason at the Hobart International round of 16 on Tuesday.
