disciplined firmness.
Jana Fett – Overview
Jana Fett (born 2 November 1996 in Zagreb, Croatia) is a Croatian professional tennis player who reached a career-high WTA singles ranking of No. 97 on 30 October 2017. A 1.68 m right-hander with a two-handed backhand, she was a world-class junior, reaching No. 12 in the junior rankings and the 2014 Australian Open girls' singles final. As a professional she reached WTA semifinals in Hobart and Tokyo in 2017, came within two match points of defeating eventual champion Caroline Wozniacki at the 2018 Australian Open, reached a WTA 125 final in Midland in 2023 and enjoyed a major resurgence in 2024–25. Her career is currently interrupted by a provisional anti-doping suspension imposed in December 2025; as of October 2026 no final resolution of the case has been announced.
Background and Playing Profile
Fett was born in Zagreb and began playing tennis as a child in Croatia. She is 1.68 m tall, plays right-handed with a two-handed backhand and lists hard court as her preferred surface. Former Croatian Top-20 player Goran Prpić has been her coach.
Her game is based on aggressive baseline tennis. Fett can take the ball early, strike relatively flat from both wings and use her first serve to establish attacking positions. At her best she plays close to the baseline and redirects pace effectively, although maintaining consistency has sometimes been more difficult than producing high-level individual performances.
Outstanding Junior Career
Fett was one of Croatia's strongest juniors of her generation and reached a career-high ITF junior ranking of No. 12 in February 2014.
Her biggest junior achievement came at the 2014 Australian Open, where she advanced to the girls' singles final. Russian Elizaveta Kulichkova defeated her 6–2, 6–1 in the championship match. The result placed Fett among the leading international prospects before she concentrated fully on professional tennis.
Early Professional Breakthrough – 2015
Fett made her ITF professional debut in 2013 but accelerated dramatically in 2015, improving from outside the Top 500 to a season high of No. 149 and finishing the year at No. 231.
She won ITF titles at Dijon and Loughborough before producing the most important result of her early career at the $75,000 Dunlop World Challenge in Toyota, Japan. Fett defeated Luksika Kumkhum in the final to win what was then by far her biggest professional title.
WTA Breakthrough – Hobart 2017
Fett began 2017 with an unexpected run at the Hobart International. Ranked outside the Top 300, she came through qualifying to reach her first WTA main draw and then continued all the way to the semifinals.
Her run ended against another qualifier, Elise Mertens, who went on to win the tournament. The result transformed Fett's ranking position and established her as a potential WTA-level player.
Tokyo Semifinal and Top-100 Debut
Fett produced a second major breakthrough at the Japan Women's Open in Tokyo in September 2017. Again starting in qualifying, she defeated top seed and world No. 15 Kristina Mladenovic, recording the first Top-20 victory of her career.
She reached the semifinal against fellow qualifier Miyu Kato and came within one point of reaching her first WTA final before losing in three sets. The result carried Fett into the Top 100 for the first time. She reached her career-high ranking of No. 97 on 30 October and finished 2017 at No. 98.
Australian Open Drama – 2018
Fett made her Grand Slam main-draw debut at the 2018 Australian Open. After winning her first-round match she faced world No. 2 Caroline Wozniacki in the second round.
Fett came extraordinarily close to one of the biggest upsets of the tournament. She led 5–1 and 40–15 in the deciding set, giving her two match points. Wozniacki saved both, won six consecutive games and escaped with a 3–6, 6–2, 7–5 victory.
Wozniacki subsequently won the tournament and became world No. 1. Fett's near-victory remains one of the most memorable matches of her career.
Ranking Difficulties – 2018 to 2022
Fett was unable to consolidate her Top-100 position. She finished 2018 at No. 206, followed by No. 264 in 2019, No. 209 in 2020 and No. 231 in 2021.
She nevertheless remained active on both the WTA and ITF circuits. In 2021 she qualified for Luxembourg and reached the second round. In 2022 she qualified for four WTA main draws – Birmingham, Wimbledon, Chennai and Seoul – but finished the season at No. 271.
Her Wimbledon appearance in 2022 produced an exceptionally difficult first-round assignment against world No. 1 Iga Świątek.
Resurgence and Midland Final – 2023
Fett began rebuilding during 2023. Her best regular WTA result was a second-round appearance in Rabat after qualifying, but the strongest part of her season came in North America late in the year.
She reached the final of an ITF $60,000 tournament in Toronto and then produced an excellent run at the Midland WTA 125. Fett defeated top seed Emma Navarro 3–6, 6–1, 6–4 in the semifinal before losing the final to Anna Kalinskaya 7–5, 6–4.
The Midland runner-up finish remains the highest-level singles final of her professional career. She finished 2023 ranked No. 150.
Major Comeback – 2024
The 2024 season represented Fett's strongest sustained period since her original breakthrough. She won the W75 Split title in April and followed it only three weeks later by capturing the W100 Oeiras championship in Portugal, then the biggest ITF title of her career.
Her performances earned her ITF World Tennis Tour Player of the Month recognition for April. The run moved her rapidly back toward the Top 100, and she reached a 2024 season high of No. 105.
Roland Garros Breakthrough – 2024
Fett qualified for the Roland Garros main draw for the first time in 2024. In the opening round she defeated Spain's Jessica Bouzas Maneiro 6–2, 3–6, 7–5.
It was only Fett's second Grand Slam main-draw victory and gave her a second-round appearance at a major for the first time since the 2018 Australian Open. Marie Bouzková defeated her 6–2, 6–2 in the next round.
Hua Hin and Beijing – 2024
Fett continued producing significant tour-level results during the second half of 2024. She reached the quarterfinals at Hua Hin II, losing to eventual champion Rebecca Šramková.
She also competed in Beijing, her first WTA 1000 main draw, and won a main-draw match before losing to Daria Kasatkina. Fett finished the year at No. 139, her best year-end ranking since 2017.
Strong Start to 2025
Fett began 2025 by qualifying for the Australian Open, where she defeated Alexandra Eala in the final qualifying round before losing to Harriet Dart in the first round of the main draw.
Her early-season ranking climbed as high as No. 124, the closest she had been to her career high since 2018.
Stuttgart 2025 – Victory over Donna Vekić
One of Fett's best victories came at the Stuttgart WTA 500 in April 2025. After qualifying for the main draw, she defeated fellow Croatian Donna Vekić, then ranked inside the Top 20.
It was Fett's second career victory over a Top-20 opponent, following her 2017 win over Kristina Mladenovic. She advanced to the round of 16, where world No. 2 Iga Świątek ended her run.
Fett also qualified for the Madrid WTA 1000 and reached the round of 16 in Iași during the 2025 clay season.
Grand Slam Record
Australian Open – Second round (2018); first round (2025)
Roland Garros – Second round (2024)
Wimbledon – First round (2018, 2022)
US Open – No main-draw appearance
Best Grand Slam result – Second round (Australian Open 2018, Roland Garros 2024)
Grand Slam main-draw singles record – 2–5
Although Fett has spent much of her career around Grand Slam qualifying level, her two second-round appearances are memorable for different reasons: the extraordinary near-upset of Wozniacki in Melbourne and her successful qualifying run followed by a main-draw victory at Roland Garros in 2024.
ITF Titles and Doubles
Fett has been considerably more successful at ITF level than her WTA title count suggests. Current career records credit her with nine ITF singles titles, including the important Toyota title in 2015 and the W75 Split and W100 Oeiras championships in 2024.
She has also won five ITF doubles titles. Her doubles career has always been secondary to singles, with a career-high doubles ranking of No. 348 reached on 21 May 2018.
Croatian National Team
Fett has represented Croatia in Billie Jean King Cup competition and has been part of the national-team setup across several seasons. Her combination of singles experience and international tour competition made her a useful option for Croatia, particularly during periods when higher-ranked Croatian players were unavailable.
Her most recent national-team appearance came during the Billie Jean King Cup play-offs in Varaždin in November 2025. That event subsequently became significant for reasons extending beyond the competition itself.
Provisional Anti-Doping Suspension – 2025/26
On 23 January 2026 the International Tennis Integrity Agency announced that Fett had been provisionally suspended under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme. The case originated from an in-competition sample she provided while representing Croatia in the Billie Jean King Cup play-offs in Varaždin on 16 November 2025.
Analysis of the A sample detected SARM Ostarine (S-22), a metabolite of LGD-4033 and metabolites of GW501516. The B sample was analysed on 14 January 2026 and confirmed the A-sample findings. The substances fall under the prohibited categories of other anabolic agents and metabolic modulators.
The ITIA sent Fett a pre-charge notice on 22 December 2025 for potential violations involving the presence and/or use of prohibited substances without a valid Therapeutic Use Exemption. Because two of the detected substances are classified as non-Specified substances, the applicable rules required a mandatory provisional suspension. The suspension took effect on 22 December 2025.
It is important to distinguish a provisional suspension from a final adjudication. As of October 2026, no publicly announced final decision establishing the ultimate sanction has been found. Fett therefore remains provisionally suspended rather than being described here as having received a final doping ban.
2026 Status and Ranking
Fett has played no official matches in 2026 because of the provisional suspension. The rules prohibit her, while suspended, from playing, coaching at or attending sanctioned tennis events covered by the relevant governing bodies.
Her ranking has consequently fallen rapidly as previous results expire. She began 2026 at No. 186, but by 28 September had dropped to No. 791. The WTA currently labels her profile “Inactive.” In this instance the absence from competition is directly explained by the provisional suspension rather than retirement.
Ranking History
2015 season high – No. 149; year-end No. 231
2016 season high – No. 142; year-end No. 196
2017 season high – No. 97; year-end No. 98
2018 season high – No. 102; year-end No. 206
2019 season high – No. 218; year-end No. 264
2020 season high/year-end – No. 209
2021 season high – No. 196; year-end No. 231
2022 season high – No. 225; year-end No. 271
2023 season high/year-end – No. 150
2024 season high – No. 105; year-end No. 139
2025 season high – No. 124; year-end No. 197
2026 season high – No. 186
28 September 2026 – No. 791
Career Statistics
Full name – Jana Fett
Born – 2 November 1996, Zagreb, Croatia
Nationality – Croatian
Height – 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Plays – Right-handed, two-handed backhand
Preferred surface – Hard
Coach – Goran Prpić
Junior career-high ranking – No. 12
Junior Grand Slam final – Australian Open 2014
Career-high singles ranking – No. 97 (30 October 2017)
Career-high doubles ranking – No. 348 (21 May 2018)
WTA singles titles – 0
WTA singles semifinals – 2: Hobart 2017, Tokyo 2017
WTA 125 singles finals – 1: Midland 2023
ITF singles titles – 9
ITF doubles titles – 5
Best Grand Slam result – Second round
Top-20 victories – Kristina Mladenovic (2017), Donna Vekić (2025)
2026 ranking – No. 791 at 28 September
Current status – Provisionally suspended under the Tennis Anti-Doping Programme
Career Assessment
Jana Fett's career has contained several distinct phases. An Australian Open junior final identified her as an important Croatian prospect, and her spectacular 2017 breakthrough – two WTA semifinals, a Top-20 victory and a rise to No. 97 – appeared to establish her as a future regular inside the Top 100.
That expectation was never fully realised. Ranking setbacks followed, but Fett repeatedly rebuilt her career. Her 2023 Midland final and particularly her 2024 resurgence, when she won W75 and W100 titles, reached the Roland Garros second round and climbed to No. 105, demonstrated unusual persistence. The 2025 Stuttgart victory over Donna Vekić showed that she remained capable of defeating Top-20 opposition nearly eight years after her first such win.
Her current career position is unresolved. The provisional anti-doping suspension that began in December 2025 has prevented her from competing throughout 2026 and caused her ranking to fall from No. 186 to No. 791. Until the disciplinary process reaches a publicly confirmed final outcome, it would be premature either to describe Fett as retired or to assign a definitive final sanction. At age 29, her future professional career therefore depends substantially on the resolution of that case.
all texts by ChatGPT