Emma Raducanu retired injured from her first grasscourt match of 2022 after just seven games casting a doubt over her Wimbledon preparations.
The 19-year-old’s season has been beset by various injuries and she needed medical treatment on court after the third game of her first-round match in Nottingham at Viktorija Golubic.
But what appeared to be an ab or rib problem continued to hamper her and she withdrew from the match while 4-3 down to her opponent. Of the injury, she said: “It’s maybe a rib or something, I need to get a scan probably.”
Her withdrawal from the tournament is far from ideal just three weeks out of Wimbledon, which had proved her breakout event a year earlier.
She reached the fourth round before retiring from her last-16 match with breathing difficulties before going on to win the US Open title against the odds.
Of her possible participation at SW19, she said: “I’ve got no idea, you know. I’ll get it checked out and we’ll take it from there.”
Victory would have ensured an all-British last-16 meeting against Heather Watson only for Raducanu to be undone by her third tournament withdrawal of 2022.
