Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from Wimbledon, the tournament she holds dear, after a scan confirmed a stress fracture in her lower leg. The decision was announced late Sunday evening, just hours before the event was set to begin.

Raducanu had been managing the injury for several weeks, with signs of discomfort evident during her appearance in the HSBC Championships at Queen's Club, where she reached the final but appeared to be struggling with her movement. Following that tournament, she withdrew from the Nottingham Open and opted out of playing in Eastbourne the following week.

Despite these concerns, Raducanu practiced at the All England Club on Sunday, and as of the afternoon, still intended to compete in her first-round match against Antonia Ruzic of Croatia. During practice, she was seen wearing significant strapping on her right ankle and shin.

However, a late-night scan revealed that the niggle she had been managing had developed into a stress fracture. Raducanu shared the news on Instagram, expressing her disappointment. "Playing at Wimbledon, in front of a home crowd, means everything to me, so this is really difficult to process," she stated.

Earlier in the week, Raducanu was seen leaving the All England Club in a protective boot, fueling speculation about the severity of her injury. She did not practice at Wimbledon between Monday and Saturday, but booked sessions on the latter day. While the first session was manageable, she received treatment from a physiotherapist mid-session. In her second practice session, against Anna Kalinskaya, Raducanu cut the practice short by 10 minutes after falling behind.

Raducanu had delayed her pre-tournament press conference by 24 hours, indicating a period of assessment. Speaking on Sunday, she had indicated a strong intention to play, stating, "I’m going to do everything with my team in terms of treatment, and that’s the current plan. That’s the plan right now – to play." She described the issue as a "lower-leg niggle" that began at the end of the clay-court season and was exacerbated by the five matches played at Queen's Club. She emphasized that she and her team were exhausting all options to manage the load and be ready for the tournament.

The final scan, however, delivered the conclusive news, leading to her withdrawal from her home Grand Slam event.