Emma Raducanu will not play a single match at this year's Wimbledon after a scan on Sunday night confirmed that a problem she had been managing in her lower right leg has developed into a stress fracture. The British number one, seeded 30th, had been due to start her campaign on Monday against Croatia's Antonia Ruzic on Court One. That match will not now take place.
A Week Spent Under a Cloud of Doubt
Concerns over Raducanu's fitness had been building steadily in the days leading up to the Grand Slam. On Saturday she returned to the practice courts wearing visible strapping around her lower right leg and began with a careful, hour-long session alongside her coaching team. The measured pace of that workout made it plain how cautiously everyone around her was approaching the situation.
Worry deepened when Raducanu cut short a practice set with Russia's Anna Kalinskaya, leaving the court with around 10 minutes still remaining. The sight of her walking off early only intensified questions about whether she would be fit to compete.
Sunday Morning Brought Cautious Encouragement
The atmosphere shifted slightly on Sunday morning. Raducanu looked noticeably more assured during a hitting session with practice partner Alexis Canter, pushing off her right leg with more conviction when striking the ball on her forehand side. However, the session with Canter did not carry the same physical demands as the earlier work against Kalinskaya, meaning genuine uncertainty about how her leg would hold up in a competitive match remained.
Later that afternoon Raducanu addressed the media and made her intent unmistakably clear. She said she was prepared to accept greater risk and push through discomfort if it meant she could walk out onto a Wimbledon court.
The Final Scan Ended All Discussion
Then came the news that made the decision for her. A final medical examination on Sunday evening revealed the injury had progressed beyond a point that allowed any room for compromise.
"I've done everything possible to try to get to the start line but after a final scan tonight the niggle I've been managing has developed into a stress fracture," Raducanu said in a statement.
"I've been medically advised to stop pushing through."
She also spoke about what missing the event means to her personally: "Playing at Wimbledon, in front of a home crowd, means everything to me, so this is really difficult to process."
Why She Waited Until the Very Last Moment
The announcement, coming on the eve of her first match, reflects just how deeply Wimbledon matters to any British tennis player. Raducanu, like every home player who has grown up watching this tournament, did not want to accept she could not compete. She held off making the call to withdraw for as long as medically possible and had said that very afternoon she was willing to take on added risk. In the end, once doctors made the full extent of the damage clear, she chose to follow their guidance.
Another Painful Chapter in a Career Shadowed by Injury
For those who have followed Raducanu's career closely, this moment carries an all too familiar weight. Her run to the 2021 US Open title in New York, achieved as a qualifier without dropping a single set, announced her as one of the most thrilling young players the sport had seen in years. The five years since have told a very different story.
Physical problems have arrived in succession, preventing her from building the sustained form needed to climb into the upper tier of the women's game and remain there. The current season had already been disrupted before Wimbledon arrived. A viral illness earlier in the year left Raducanu playing just six matches between early February and the start of the Queen's Club tournament earlier this month. She came through Queen's in a way that offered some genuine cause for optimism heading into the grass-court Grand Slam. That hope has now dissolved once more.
Every time a spell of real progress seems within reach, her body steps in. The stress fracture in her right leg is simply the latest chapter in a story that has demanded extraordinary personal resilience and tested her capacity to keep going in ways few players are ever asked to endure.
The Road Ahead
With her Wimbledon campaign over before it could begin, Raducanu's immediate priority shifts to recovery. A stress fracture requires proper rest before any return to training can be considered, and no timeline has been set for when she might play competitive tennis again.
British tennis supporters are left to watch Wimbledon without their highest-ranked home player, a sharp and familiar disappointment. Raducanu has previously reached the fourth round at the All England Club on two occasions, each time offering a glimpse of what she is capable of when her body allows her to compete freely. The question of what she might truly achieve at Wimbledon when fully fit remains wide open. The wait for that answer goes on.
