Alison Bai is a former Australian professional tennis player from Canberra who competed primarily on the ITF World Tennis Tour. She reached career-high WTA rankings of No. 305 in singles and No. 125 in doubles, won one ITF singles title and multiple ITF doubles titles, and represented Australia in junior international competition. Bai retired from professional tennis on 1 April 2022 and later moved into tennis administration and athlete-development work with Tennis ACT.
Born in Canberra on 18 January 1990, Alison Bai began playing tennis at age six after encouragement from her aunt. She won her first Canberra tournament at age nine and captured a national 12-and-under title. Selection for the ACT school sport team at age 10 convinced her that an elite tennis career was possible. Bai later represented Australia in the 16-and-under World Junior Fed Cup finals and the Australian junior Fed Cup programme, and she held an Australian Institute of Sport tennis scholarship from 2007 to 2008.
Bai turned professional in 2005 and built a career across the ITF circuit, competing in singles and doubles events in Australia and overseas. Her singles breakthrough came at the 2015 Mildura ITF tournament, where she won her first professional singles title on grass. She also reached ITF singles finals at Mildura in 2014 and Changsha in 2018. Her strongest ranking period came in singles in 2015, when she reached No. 305, and in doubles in January 2020, when she reached No. 125.
Doubles became an increasingly important part of Bai’s career. She won ITF doubles titles with partners including Zoe Hives, Aleksandrina Naydenova and Jaimee Fourlis, and reached the Hobart International doubles semi-finals with Lizette Cabrera in 2018. She also competed in multiple Australian Opens, including the 2019 women’s doubles event after winning an Australian Open wildcard. The WTA lists her career prize money as US$214,084 and her combined recorded match record as 266 wins and 262 losses in the relevant career-stat profile.
Bai’s career was shaped by a strong connection to Canberra and Australian tennis. In 2021, she became the principal carer for her father after he suffered a series of strokes while travelling with her. She retired from professional tennis on 1 April 2022 and subsequently worked with Tennis ACT as Women and Girls Lead, supporting participation, development and leadership opportunities for women and girls. She has also completed a Bachelor of Business and Commerce, a Juris Doctor and a Level 2 club-professional coaching qualification. The WTA provider record supplied for this profile lists her status as Inactive.
Bai’s first major development milestone was selection for the ACT school sport tennis team at age 10, which she identified as the moment her ambition to become an elite player was established. Her senior breakthrough was winning the 2015 Mildura ITF singles title after reaching the same tournament’s final in 2014.
Career-high singles ranking: No. 305, achieved 2 November 2015. Career-high doubles ranking: No. 125, achieved 20 January 2020. ITF singles titles: 1. WTA-listed career match record: 266 wins and 262 losses. WTA-listed career prize money: US$214,084. Bai also represented Australia in junior international competition and was an AIS tennis scholarship athlete from 2007 to 2008.
Notable moments include winning the 2015 Mildura ITF singles title; defeating top seed Zhu Lin during her run to the 2018 Changsha ITF singles final; reaching the 2018 Hobart International doubles semi-finals with Lizette Cabrera; winning an Australian Open doubles wildcard; and winning the 2020 Apis Canberra International women’s doubles title with Jaimee Fourlis.