Alizé Cornet has played in the main draw at 60 consecutive grand slams. She could yet break Ai Sugiyama’s record of 62 before the year is out. And that would be the definition of perfect timing, because the French world No 61 has indicated 2022 will probably be her last on tour.
The other thing about Cornet is that through those previous 59 appearances she had never made it to a single quarter-final. The closest she came was at the 2009 Australian Open – on this very court – when she led Dinara Safina 5-2 in the third set but squandered two match points and lost it 7-5.
