Serena Williams, who is currently at her home in Florida, has turned down a wild card into the WTA event at Sydney next week.
Williams has also been offered a spot at the exhibition event in Kooyong next week, but while organizers have not confirmed whether Williams has agreed to or declined the invitation, Sydney officials indicated that Williams does not plan to play a warmup.
"She's taken a decision that she wants to focus fully on her defence of the Australian Open," said Lawrence Robertson, the Sydney tournament director, as quoted by theSydney Morning Herald newspaper.
The reigning Australian Open champion had declared her intention to defend her title in Melbourne just months following the birth of her first child. She made her first public appearance on court a week ago at the Abu Dhabi exhibition, and said she was still assessing whether to play.
Williams is in Florida this week, not in Australia like most players intending to play the season's first major, with cold temperatures making it less than ideal for training for the Australian heat.
Garbine Muguruza, who retired during her opening round encounter in Brisbane with cramps, has taken a wild card into Sydney.