British number one Emma Raducanu withdrew ​from Wimbledon on Sunday (June 28, 2026), the eve of her first-round ‌match, as a result of a stress fracture ​in her lower right leg.

The 23-year-old ⁠former U.S. Open champion posted a message on Instagram announcing her decision.

“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,” the 30th seed said. “I’ve been medically ⁠advised to stop pushing through.”

Raducanu had been scheduled to face Croatia’s Antonia Ruzic on Court One on Monday (June 29, 2026).

She had ​told reporters earlier that she planned to play.

Recently reunited with coach Andrew Richardson, Raducanu reached the final at Queen’s Club two weeks ago but withdrew ‌from the Nottingham Open, raising fitness concerns.

She had ​also been unable to train last week and cut short a practice session ⁠on Saturday (June 27, 2026) due to lower-leg discomfort.

“I have a lower-leg niggle that I’ve been dealing with since before ‌Queen’s, actually from the back end of the clay court season. I’ve been managing it,” Raducanu said.

Since her breakthrough 2021 U.S. Open title as a teenage qualifier, Raducanu’s career has been disrupted by injuries and illness, alongside frequent coaching ‌changes. Earlier this season she struggled with a post-viral illness ​and a back problem before losing in the first round at the French ⁠Open.

Raducanu missed both the French Open and Wimbledon in ⁠2023 after procedures on her hands and ankle, and also ended last season early ‌due to illness.

The Wimbledon tournament runs from June 29 to July 12.

 Serena Williams took aim at tennis’ anti-doping system on Sunday (June 28, 2026) ahead of her Wimbledon return, calling the system “unprofessional” and “unreasonable.”

The 44-year-old Williams returned to the testing pool before she could announce her comeback to professional tennis and was asked about her experiences complying with the rules.

“It’s gruelling. They changed the rules now. I didn’t know some of the rules. So apparently if you miss a test outside of your window, it still counts as missed. I’m like, I guess I can’t go pick up my kids,” said the seven-time Wimbledon champion, a mother of two. “It’s unprofessional. I hate it. I think it’s necessary, but I think a lot of the stuff, if I want to go places outside of my window, I should be able to go without having it count as a missed test.”

Williams’ first match at the grass-court Grand Slam since 2022 will take place on Tuesday (June 30) when she faces Maya Joint as part of her tennis comeback. She returned to the sport this month in a doubles match at the Queen’s Club grass-court tournament.

The anti-doping protocol was in the spotlight last week when Marketa Vondrousova, the 2023 Wimbledon champion, was suspended for four years for refusing an anti-doping test, the latest high-profile player sanctioned.

Players are required by the International Tennis Integrity Agency to provide their daily “whereabouts” for no-notice testing.

Williams described it as “unreasonable.”

“That was a big reason why I didn’t want to come back either,” she said, “because it’s just so hard. I mean, my life is busy, I run a company, I run a VC company, I travel the world. I have children. It’s like I could be in so many different cities so many different times.”

The ITIA, in response to Williams’ comments, told The Associated Press the rules have been the same for several years.

“If a tester is unable to reach a player during their allocated hour, then it may well be a ‘strike,’ and three failures could lead to a charge. If a tester is unable to reach a player outside of their allocated hour, it is not considered a strike,” it said of the whereabouts rules.

In 2023, Jenson Brooksby was given an 18-month suspension after an independent tribunal determined he missed three drug tests within the span of a year.

Under anti-doping rules, athletes can be penalized without a positive test if they have three “whereabouts failures” within 12 months.

“There have been no changes to the whereabouts rules in the last few years,” the ITIA added in its statement. “We understand the system can seem challenging, but it is there to protect players, not to trip them up. If players are unsure or have questions, we would welcome a conversation with them directly or through their agents.”

Williams, who has previously criticised the frequency of anti-doping testing, said she’s willing to comply and has “always have been very clear about what I do.”

“Just getting in that routine of, all right, first of all, learning the new rules, then just getting back and reporting every day,” she said. “I guess now for 24 hours where I’m going to be is just different — at least for me. I don’t know if that works for everyone else.”