British tennis star Emma Raducanu has announced she will not be playing at this year’s Wimbledon.
Raducanu, who won the 2021 US Open, will miss the entire of the grass-court season due to planned surgeries on her hands and ankle.
It is her latest injury setback, after having pulled out of the Madrid Open last month.
She said she will be having minor surgery on both her hands, and her ankle, in an effort to get her back on to the court.
Writing on Instagram, she said: “It is safe to say the last 10 months have been difficult as I dealt with a recurring injury on a bone of both hands.
“I tried my best to manage the pain and play through it for most of this year and end of last year by reducing practice load dramatically, missing weeks of training as well as cutting last season short to try [to] heal it.
“Unfortunately it’s not enough. I’m having a minor procedure done on both hands to resolve the issues.
“I’m disappointed to share that I will be out for the next few months and while I am at it will have another minor procedure that is due on my ankle.
“It pains me that I will miss the summer events and I tried to downplay the issues, so I thank all my fans who continued to support me when you did not know the facts.
“Look forward to seeing you all back out there.”
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The 20-year-old pulled out of the Madrid Open just hours before she was due on court, and a day after a news conference where she refused to be drawn on questions about her fitness.
Raducanu has had a tumultuous season so far, bagging a last 16 spot at the prestigious Indian Wells in March, which was followed by first-round defeats at Miami and Stuttgart.
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She was also knocked out of the Australian Open in January by American teenager Coco Gauff.
It is now unlikely Raducanu will play in any other Grand Slam events this season, with the French Open taking place this month, and the US Open in August.
