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Emma Raducanu, 18, retired from her last-16 match at Wimbledon. She today spoke out about her reason behind the move claiming the “whole experience caught up” with her. Her statement in full is detailed below.
The tennis star became a wildcard in this year’s competition after making it further in the competition than expected.
She was forced to retire from her Wimbledon fourth-round match after suffering breathing difficulties bringing her Wimbledon journey to a heartbreaking end.
The teenage athlete was trailing 4-6 0-3 to Ajla Tomlijanovic when she called on her trainer.
Raducanu left the court for medical treatment before announcing she would not be returning.
READ MORE: Emma Raducanu breaks silence on Wimbledon withdrawal
Wimbledon later confirmed Raducanu retired from the match because of “difficulty breathing”.
The British wildcard tennis star, who was ranked 338th in the world before the tournament, lost a tight first set.
She began to show signs of feeling unwell early in her second set.
Raducanu was seen frequently placing her hand on her stomach and showing signs of breathlessness.
The young Briton beat two top-50 opponents earlier in the tournament: Marketa Vondrousova and Sorana Cirstea.
She reached the last 16, making her the last Briton standing in the singles draws.
In a statement released 18 hours after she abandoned her match against Australian Alja Tomljanovic after 75 minutes’ play, the 18-year-old tennis player has spoken about the issues which prompted her to retire.
Raducanu wrote: “I wanted to let everyone know that I am feeling much better this morning,” the 18-year-old wrote.
“First up, I want to congratulate Ajla on an incredible performance and I’m sorry our match ended the way it did. I was playing the best tennis of my life in front of an amazing crowd this week and I think the whole experience caught up with me.
“At the end of the first set, after some super intense rallies, I started to breathe heavily and felt dizzy. The medical team advised me not to continue and although it felt like the hardest thing in the world not to be able to finish my Wimbledon on the court, I was not well enough to carry on.
“I want to thank the people who have cheered me on every single match, I wanted to win so badly for you! I also want to thank the All England Club, my team, the LTA, my parents and friends. Last night will go a long way to helping me learn what it takes to perform at the top.
“I will cherish everything we have achieved together this week and come back stronger! Can’t wait to see what’s next on my journey.”
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