Raducanu Withdraws
Emma Raducanu confirms 'difficult' Wimbledon withdrawal due to foot stress fracture.
Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from Wimbledon after a stress fracture in her right leg ended her hopes of competing on home soil. The British No. 1, seeded 30th at the tournament, confirmed the news on Instagram on Sunday night — just hours after telling reporters she planned to play Metro.
The 23-year-old was due to face Croatia's Antonia Ruzic on Court 1 at 1:00 PM Monday. She wrote: "I've done everything possible to try to get to the start line tomorrow but after a final scan tonight, the niggle I've been managing has developed into a stress fracture." Doctors advised her to stop pushing through The Independent.
A Sunday Night MRI Changed Everything
As recently as 3:30 PM on Sunday, Raducanu held a press conference and said her plan was to play. Six hours later, a final MRI scan told a different story. The scan revealed the "niggle" she had been managing since the clay-court season had become a full stress fracture, forcing an immediate withdrawal The Independent.
Signs of trouble had been building all week. Raducanu was spotted wearing an orthopedic boot at the All England Club on June 23–25. On Saturday, she tried to practice with Anna Kalinskaya but quit after 45 minutes, trailing 0-4, showing visible pain when pushing off her right foot Ilford Recorder.
Queen's Club Run Likely Pushed Body Too Far
Raducanu played five hard matches in six days at Queen's Club just before Wimbledon. She reached the final, losing to Donna Vekic 6-0, 7-6. During that match, she needed a medical timeout for thigh strapping. Experts say the heavy workload on fast grass courts likely made the bone stress worse Metro.
BBC pundit Tim Henman noted that Raducanu "didn't have a foundation to build from" after long injury layoffs. Sports analyst Stephen Smith called a stress fracture a "complex relationship between load and underlying recovery" for an athlete with her history of repeated injuries The Independent.
A Career Already Defined by Injury Setbacks
This is not Raducanu's first major health blow. She missed most of the 2023 season after surgery on both wrists and her left ankle. In early 2026, a post-viral illness wiped out nearly her entire clay-court swing Yahoo Sports.
At just 23, she has now suffered injuries to both wrists, an ankle, and now a stress fracture in her right leg. Before this week, she was ranked world No. 33 — her best level since winning the 2021 US Open. The withdrawal means she will likely drop to No. 45–52 in the rankings The Independent.
Six to Twelve Weeks Off — US Open at Risk
A stress fracture in the lower leg typically needs 6 to 12 weeks of non-weight-bearing rest. That timeline puts her 2026 US Open campaign in serious doubt — a tournament she won as a wildcard in 2021. A Lucky Loser will take her spot in the draw at Wimbledon Metro.
Under Wimbledon's rules, Raducanu will still receive £40,000 — 50% of the £80,000 first-round prize money. The remaining £40,000 goes to the Lucky Loser who replaces her. Raducanu said: "I'm really devastated... I hope to see you on the grass again soon" The Independent.
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