Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from the Nottingham Open just hours after her defeat in the Queen's Club final to Donna Vekic, with the British tennis star citing a change of schedule as she focuses her preparations on Wimbledon 2026.
Raducanu fought valiantly throughout a demanding week at the WTA 500 tournament in London, but was ultimately defeated by Vekic in the final. She suffered a straight-sets loss, including a crushing 6-0 defeat in the opening set, though she showed tremendous resilience in the second before losing on a tiebreak.
This represents an encouraging return to form for the 2021 US Open champion, whose previous victory had come back in March. However, Raducanu will be unable to build on her momentum in the East Midlands this week, having withdrawn from the competition, with Sara Bejlek now set to replace her.
Raducanu had been non-committal when questioned about her participation in Nottingham over the weekend, admitting she had been dealing with a few niggling injury concerns. She said: "Yeah, I don't know right now. I pretty much came straight into here. I haven't necessarily decided. When does it start? Tuesday? ... So tomorrow? ... We'll see. We'll see (laughter)."
The official explanation provided for her withdrawal is a change of schedule, with Raducanu continuing her preparations for Wimbledon next month. Nevertheless, Raducanu certainly demonstrated numerous encouraging signs at Queen's and ought to feel confident approaching the Championships.
Reflecting on reaching just her third-ever professional final, Raducanu said: "It's been an incredible week for me, making the final here, playing in my home city, in my home tournament. The support I have received all week has been incredible but I really want to take this opportunity to thank everyone. Today was a really tough match. Donna played extremely well from the start to the finish."
She added: "So thanks for getting me through some tough moments this week and also for helping me push back in that second set. The performances I had this week, I played really well. I was able to play and dictate, and that's something I wasn't able to do [in the final]. I managed to get myself back into the second set, and I'm proud of how I fought. That's not something that in the past years I have always done, so that's a positive."
Victory at Queen's would have been her maiden title on grass, but that achievement will have to wait for another occasion. She could yet claim it before Wimbledon, with the Eastbourne Open scheduled for the week after next. However, should Raducanu go deep into that tournament, it could heighten the risk of picking up an injury before the action kicks off in SW19.
