Raducanu Pulls Out of Wimbledon With Stress Fracture
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- Emma Raducanu pulled out of Wimbledon on Sunday (June 28, 2026) with a stress fracture in her right leg, hours before she was due to open play on No. 1 Court against Antonia Ruzic.
- The injury was first felt during the clay-court season and aggravated by her run to the Queen's Club final this month, where she lost to Donna Vekic — a result that earned her a Wimbledon seeding of 30.
- Sky Sports lead tennis commentator Jonathan Overend urged against cynicism toward Raducanu, arguing that stress fractures 'don't happen overnight' and her Queen's run while carrying the injury was 'all the more remarkable and should be celebrated.'
- Raducanu has reunited with coach Andrew Richardson, who worked with her shortly after her 2021 US Open triumph as an 18-year-old qualifier — Overend said the reunion had already produced visible improvement.
- Overend placed Raducanu's 'base level' at between 20 and 30 in the world, calling a ranking of 30 'actually doing pretty well' given the depth of the women's tour, but said she needs 'a long period injury free of stability' to progress.
- Despite her shock 2021 US Open title, Raducanu has not won a tour-level tournament before or since, though Overend said her Queen's Club tennis was 'some of her best since that triumph.'
Why it matters: Raducanu's withdrawal comes at a moment when her reunion with Richardson had produced the most encouraging stretch of form since her 2021 US Open run, and Overend's assessment that she needs 'a long period injury free of stability' frames the stakes for a 23-year-old whose ranking of 30 still lags expectations set by her only tour-level title.
