Emma Raducanu dealt bitter blow for Wimbledon after Queens Final defeat

After years of injury-stricken woes, Emma Raducanu has found her form again, but a bitter blow at Queens leaves her Wimbledon hopes in doubt.

Raducanu became an overnight sensation in 2021 when she won the US Open, but has since been chasing a second title.

A series of fitness issues started at Wimbledon of the same year, when she retired from her fourth-round match against Ajla Tomljanovic, despite being in good form.

From there, she suffered major wrist and ankle injuries, resulting in surgery to both hands and her left foot in 2023.

Now, Raducanu is finding her feet again with impressive displays at the Transylvania Open and, most recently, the Queen's Club Championships, reaching the finals in both before falling short of a trophy.

But with Wimbledon on the horizon, the famed Brit has now been dealt a blow, as she's pulled out of the Nottingham Open.

Emma Raducanu pulls out of event just before Wimbledon

With Wimbledon approaching at the end of June, Raducanu will have hoped to be back to full fitness and firing on all cylinders to improve on her fourth-round best on home soil.

That looked to be the way as she reached the Queens Grand Final, winning eight consecutive sets at the Andy Murray Arena on the way.

But the 23-year-old pulled up in the depths of her game against Donna Vekić, and fought through thigh pain to try and mount a comeback.

Unfortunately for the Brit, a second-set tie breaker went in the way of Vekic, whose serve proved so strong that she reeled a scathing rant at her team for 'saying nothing' to help her. Despite her rally, she fell short and was awarded a silver plate for second place.

Raducanu was set to bounce from Queens straight into the Nottingham Open to stay fresh before Wimbledon, but it now seems the thigh injury was too painful to risk.

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The British No.1 has pulled out of the Nottingham Open this weekend, and will instead hope to recover in time for Wimbledon.

There has been little information released about how serious the injury is, but she has not yet made a decision on the Eastbourne Open, starting on 20 June, a week before Wimbledon.

Currently ranked as No.31 in the world, Raducanu will face an uphill battle to feature at Wimbledon, but if she can stay fit, it'll be her best chance at a WTA Grand Slam since 2021.

While injuries have been her crux, there could be a good boost for Raducanu as the most recent WTA rising star, Maja Chwalinska, could be set to miss the event herself.

Wimbledon is already heating up to be one of the best spectacles of the year, with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner returning to the court with a huge mixed doubles plan alongside the Williams sisters, now that Serena is also back.