ATP Tour
Raducanu confirms US Open absence as injury setback deepens
Raducanu will miss the US Open as her stress fracture recovery continues and ranking pressure builds.
Emma Raducanu will not feature at the US Open, with the Briton still recovering from the stress fracture that also ruled her out of Wimbledon.
In a statement relayed to Sky Sports, her team said: “After latest consultation with her team, Emma will have to miss the US Open.
“While she is working hard to rehab her stress fracture, given the nature of the injury, it needs time to heal. She is sad to be missing a tournament that is so special to her.”
The latest blow means Raducanu has missed much of the 2026 season so far. She did not play during the clay-court swing, and her run to the Queen’s final was her only grass-court tournament of the year.
On Sky Sports Tennis, Annabel Croft spoke about the repeated physical setbacks that have interrupted Raducanu’s progress. “It feels as if she’s been unbelievably unluck with the injury problems she’s faced throughout the course of her career. Don’t forget she’s had wrist surgery, feet problems, and now this stress fracture.
“And, you know there are so many injuries out there on the Tour, it seems like she never gets a clear run where she’s able to really go for it with her tennis, and her body, and her mind injury free. And just keep the momentum going because we’re all so excited with what she did at Queen’s Club, where she reached the final there just ahead of Wimbledon, where everyone is going ‘Wow’.
“She really ignited her tennis again and thing were really starting to look up, but this is just a major setback. It’s a tournament that is so special to her, that’s where she’s had her greatest success, a former US Open champion, and I’ve seen lots of pictures of her posting the boot on her leg, trying to serve still, keeping her racket going.
“Showing everybody that she’s doing everything she can, but clearly it’s not healed up and you need to be fully fit to play these tournaments. It wouldn’t be a surprise if she made that decision [to end her season now] and probably that wouldn’t be such a bad decision to take because you can fully heal, rest up, get as much treatment as possible, and then come out fully fit and raring to go at the start of next year.
“But the business side of tennis, I’m sure there’s a lot of enticing things coming her way down in Asia where she will want to play her best tennis there and she’ll be very much in demand.”
Croft also addressed the wider issue of rankings and recovery. “Who knows, maybe if there’s a worry about the ranking drop with so many points to defend, potentially that ranking could plummet. Although, she might benefit from the protected ranking.
“These factors have to be considered, but at the end of the day, your health is your wealth and that’s the most important factor. The problem for all of these players facing injury problems, and we see it for all those years with Juan Martin del Potro, everyone’s so worried about Alcaraz because it’s similar.
“Every time you go out there to practice, and I think Jack Draper’s alluded to this, you don’t know how much to push yourself because an injury that has been a problem, needs to be loaded up in training to see how far you can load it up before playing professional tennis matches.
“As we know on the Tour it’s so demanding what is required from all of these players and it’s relentless. If you get through one match, there’s one that’s coming a day later. Injuries can get into a players head mentally as much as anything, so psychologically you’re thinking ‘Can I play? Can I push up on my leg? Can I push off to serve?’ How much do all these factors come in emotionally. It’s very difficult, very tough.”
Croft then reflected on the nature of the injury itself, saying, “It’s quite an unusual injury actually. I’ve had calf muscle injuries, which were not nice at all and the minute you push off, you tweak it, but a shin.
“And stress fractures are always dangerous. Whatever you do, you do not want to weaken it anymore and cause anymore problems, so it doesn’t become a long-term injury. But you don’t hear too many stress fractures in the shin actually. It seems quite an unusual injury.
“One thing that I’ve always thought about Raducanu, particularly when we saw her at Queen’s on the grass, where she played such beautiful tennis. She’s very light on her feet.
“Movement for her has always been one of her strengths. She’s such a great athlete, she moves around the ball. She’s light on her feet and gets into great positions, where she never looks off balance. Movement will be part of a major strength on what she brings out on the court. That needs to be at 100%.”
Raducanu is currently world No 49, and her ranking is expected to fall further once last year’s points from Cincinnati and the US Open come off. If she misses more key events on the WTA Tour, she could soon slip out of the top 100.
ATP Tour
Fritz ends Jodar’s challenge to win Washington title in straight sets
Fritz beat Jodar in a storm-delayed Washington final, but a late medical timeout drew criticism.
Taylor Fritz came through a tense Washington Open final against Rafael Jodar, sealing the title with a straight-sets win in the United States capital.
The final was delayed until Monday after a storm hit Washington on Sunday, but the match still delivered plenty of drama. Fritz edged the contest 7-6, 6-4 to capture his first ATP title of the season and the 11th trophy of his career.
There was, however, a contentious moment late in the second set when Jodar called for a medical timeout at 7-6, 5-4, just as Fritz was preparing to serve for the match. Fritz was visibly frustrated by the decision, while his coach, Michael Russell, was seen mouthing ‘absolute bulls***’ in response.
Jodar did appear to be dealing with a genuine wrist problem after falling on it during the match, and the injury could affect his immediate schedule. Even so, the timing raised wider questions about whether a medical timeout should be allowed when an opponent is serving for the match. It was also not the first interruption of the day, with Jodar having earlier paused to deal with his shoelaces after Fritz had broken him in the second set.
The Spaniard pushed the issue as far as deuce in the final game and saved several match points before Fritz finally closed it out. The victory ended Fritz’s run of four consecutive ATP Tour final defeats, after losses in Tokyo, Dallas, Stuttgart, and Halle.
It was also his first ATP 500 title since 2022, when he won the Japan Open. Since then, Fritz has added six ATP 250 titles, but his record at the 500 level had been comparatively quiet.
Fritz remains world No 8, though Alex de Minaur, Daniil Medvedev, and Novak Djokovic are positioned just ahead of him and could be overtaken with a strong showing at the Canadian Open. Jodar, meanwhile, has reached a new career high of world No 15.
1000 ATP Tour
Eala overturns Pegula as Google AI gets Washington final wrong
Eala beat Pegula after rain delays, while Google AI wrongly predicted a different result.
Jessica Pegula’s bid for a second Washington Open crown and the 12th title of her career was derailed by a long weather delay and an even stranger twist online. The final at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center was interrupted by thunderstorms, pushing the start back by several hours on Sunday afternoon.
When the match finally got underway, Pegula, the favourite, took the opening set 6-4 after breaking in game nine. The second set was only part-way through, with Eala leading 2-1, when rain returned. With lightning and rain still present, officials stopped play for the night at 6-4, 1-2.
That was the point at which search results created confusion. Anyone looking up “Pegula vs Eala” on Sunday evening or Monday morning was informed by Google AI that Pegula had won, even supplying a completed scoreline and a fabricated match report. The headline it produced read: “Jessica Pegula won the 2026 Mubadala DC Open singles titles, defeating Alexander Eala 6-4, 6-3 in the final.”
The AI also described a second set that never happened, claiming: “After play resumed following the lightning and rain delays, Pegula took total control. She broke Eala to charge ahead 4-2 and ultimately served out the match at 5-3, converting her first championship point with a cross-court forehand winner.”
The reality on Monday was the opposite. Eala seized control after the restart, broke in game 10 of the second set and forced a deciding set. She then won eight of the last 10 games, broke Pegula three times in the third set, and sealed the match on her second championship point for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory.
The 21-year-old made history as the first Filipina to win a WTA Tour singles title. Afterward, she addressed the crowd and made clear the result was genuine: “I feel so much love. My first chance at a title knowing it won’t be the last and already having achieved this milestone for my career,” Eala said on court. “I knew whatever happened after this match would have been already been a win for me.”
She also credited Pegula directly: “irst of all, of course, first and foremost congratulations Jessie for an amazing week and you’ve had an amazing season. It’s always a pleasure to share the court with you, I definitely learn so, so much,” Eala said.
“Especially from your forehand line and your backhand crosses. I’m really looking forward to hopefully many more finals with you.”
ATP Tour
Fritz Ends Final Run With Washington DC Open Victory
Fritz beat Jodar in DC to end his final drought and secure his 11th career title.
Taylor Fritz closed out the 2026 Washington DC Open by defeating Rafael Jodar in straight sets to claim the 11th title of his career.
After coming up short in each of his first three finals of the season, the American finally broke through with a 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 win over Jodar in the rain-delayed Monday final. It was also Fritz’s second ATP 500 title.
The result carried extra significance because Fritz had lost his previous four finals, including at the Dallas Open, Stuttgart Open and Halle Open earlier this year. In DC, he at last cleared the final hurdle.
“Thank you guys for everything,” Fritz told his team. “I have given this speech a lot recently but not as a winner, so it is nice to actually mean it a little bit more this time. Thank you so much for everything you do, staying on top of me all the time. I know it is not easy.”
Jodar was contesting only the second final of his career, after lifting his maiden title at the Grand Prix Hassan II in Morocco in April. Fritz also praised the younger player during his on-court interview, saying: “You’re so young and you’re just going to get better and better. I’m just going to get older, so thank you for letting me get this one today. It is incredible what you are doing this year.”
The rankings outcome was positive for both men. Fritz began the week at No 10 and moved up two places to No 8, taking over as the American No 1 after Ben Shelton slipped two spots. Because of the ATP’s 52-week system and the timing of points dropping from the 2025 Canadian Open, Fritz effectively added only 100 points despite winning an ATP 500 title worth 500 points.
Jodar had no points to defend from the 2025 Masters event, but points from the ATP Challenger Tour meant he added 316 rather than 330. Even so, the run sent him up nine places to a career-high No 15 and into the top 20 for the first time.
Fritz earned $461,835 and pushed his 2026 total to $2,692,744. His career prize money now stands at $32,008,653. Jodar collected $248,480, bringing his 2026 earnings to $2,041,383 and his career total to $2,387,281.
Fritz ends Jodar’s challenge to win Washington title in straight sets
Rusedski Says Eala Has Sent a Warning With Washington Title
Raducanu and Korda join US Open withdrawal list as injuries mount
Alcaraz Confronts On‑court Microphones During US Open Practice Ahead of Opelka Match
Raducanu Arrives at US Open With Momentum After Strong Hard‑Court Swing
