Tuesday, November 5, 2024

Sports stars in Wimbledon Royal Box won’t see Murray and Raducanu

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Sporting legends from Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola to England cricketer Ben Stokes packed out the Royal Box at Wimbledon this afternoon.

British athlete Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill, Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and swimmer Adam Peaty with his girlfriend Holly Ramsay were also on Centre Court.

The stars, also including Lioness Leah Williamson and cyclist Sir Chris Hoy, would likely have been hoping to see Andy Murray‘s final Wimbledon match.

But they were left disappointed after his mixed doubles clash alongside Emma Raducanu was cancelled when she pulled out, citing stiffness in her right wrist.

There had been great anticipation about Britain’s two most high-profile players teaming up to give Murray a final swansong at the All England Club.

[CLICK ON IMAGE TO EXPAND] The Royal Box at Wimbledon today: 1. Lawrence Dallaglio 2. Roy Hodgson 3. Alun Wyn Jones 4. Joe Root 5. Caroline Root 6. Sachin Tendulkar 7. Ben Stokes 8. Holly Ramsay 9. Christopher Dean 10. Adam Peaty 11. Anjali Tendulkar 12. Maria Guardiola 13. Pep Guardiola 14. Sir Gareth Edwards 15. Kate Richardson-Walsh 16. Cristina Serra 17. Leah Williamson 18. Jessica Ennis-Hill 19. Helen Richardson-Walsh 20. Beth Shriever 21. Andy Hill 22. Georgie Thompson 23. Jos Buttler 24. Kadeena Cox 25. Ben Ainslie 26. Louise Buttler 27. Conchita Martinez 28. Hannah Mills 29. Denise Lewis 30. Charley Hull 31. Jason Kenny 32. Laura Kenny 33. Sir Chris Hoy 34. Mark Philippoussis 35. Sarra Kemp
Leah Williamson and Pep Guardiola in the Royal Box at the All England Club this afternoon
The Royal Box on Centre Court at the All England Club on day six of Wimbledon this afternoon
Holly Ramsay and Adam Peaty attend day six of the Wimbledon Championships today
Track cyclists Jason and Laura Kenny wave from the Royal Box at Wimbledon this afternoon
Athlete Jessica Ennis-Hill is greeted by the crowd on Centre Court at Wimbledon today

The duo were scheduled to play Zhang Shuai and Marcelo Arevalo in the fourth match on Court One this evening, but Raducanu withdrew in the afternoon.

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The 21-year-old said in a statement: ‘Unfortunately I woke up with some stiffness in my right wrist this morning, so therefore I have decided to make the very tough decision to withdraw from the mixed doubles tonight.

‘I’m disappointed as I was really looking forward to playing with Andy but got to take care.’

It means three-time grand-slam champion Murray’s distinguished Wimbledon career has now come to an end before he retires from the sport later this year.

Other sports stars in the Royal Box today included Welsh rugby union player Alun Wyn Jones and ice dancers Jayne Torville and Chris Dean.

Cyclists Jason and Laura Kenny were also there, as was ex-England football manager Roy Hodgson and athlete Dame Denise Lewis.

Former England football manager Roy Hodgson smiles in the Royal Box at Wimbledon today
Track and field athlete Dame Denise Lewis waves to the crowd from the Royal Box today
England cricketer Joe Root and his wife Carrie Cotterell applaud from the Royal Box today
Legendary British ice dancer Christopher Dean waves from Wimbledon’s Royal Box today
Jayne Torvill, the other half of the Torvill & Dean ice dancing partnership, at Wimbledon today
Pep Guardiola sits with Maria Guardiola in the Royal Box at Wimbledon this afternoon
Legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and his wife Anjali in the Royal Box today

Also in the box were former rugby union player Lawrence Dallaglio, English golfer Charley Hull, Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis and British sailor Sir Ben Ainslie.

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In addition, Spanish former tennis player Conchita Martinez, England cricketer Jos Buttler and his wife Louise, American former tennis player Peter Fleming and British athlete Kadeena Cox were there.

Welsh former rugby union player Sir Gareth Edwards and hockey players and married couple Helen Richardson-Walsh and Kate Richardson-Walsh were also seen.

Murray was honoured by the All England Club on Thursday with an emotional tribute after defeat in the men’s doubles with brother Jamie.

That came after he pulled out of the men’s singles at the last-minute on Tuesday, having eventually decided not to play just over a week after back surgery.

Former rugby union player Lawrence Dallaglio stands up in Wimbledon’s Royal Box today
English golfer Charley Hull stands in the Royal Box at the All England Club this afternoon
Australian tennis player Mark Philippoussis in the Royal Box at Wimbledon this afternoon
Welsh former international rugby union player Alun Wyn Jones  waves at Wimbledon today
British sailor Sir Ben Ainslie waves from the Royal Box at the All England Club this afternoon
England cricketer Ben Stokes and his wife Clare Ratcliffe in the Royal Box at Wimbledon today

Murray and Raducanu had been set to face Marcelo Arevalo and Zhang Shuai today in the Scot’s last hurrah at Wimbledon this evening.

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But the match has now been cancelled just hours before it was due to start.

Raducanu cited wrist soreness as the reason for her withdrawal after her dominant third round win over world number nine Maria Sakkari yesterday.

The decision to withdraw also means Raducanu’s run is now in jeopardy, with the 21-year-old winning all three of her matches so far in straight sets.

Raducanu said: ‘Unfortunately I woke up with some stiffness in my right wrist this morning, so therefore I have decided to make the very tough decision to withdraw from the mixed doubles tonight.

‘I’m disappointed as I was really looking forward to playing with Andy but got to take care.’

Spanish former tennis player Conchita Martinez waves to the Wimbledon crowd this afternoon
Sir Chris Hoy in the Royal Box on day six of the Wimbledon Championships this afternoon
British athlete Kadeena Cox waves from the Royal Box at Wimbledon this afternoon
Welsh former rugby union player Sir Gareth Edwards in the Royal Box at Wimbledon today
Hockey players and married couple Helen Richardson-Walsh and Kate Richardson-Walsh today
American former tennis player Peter Fleming stands in the Royal Box at Wimbledon today

Raducanu is due to play her fourth-round singles match tomorrow against Lulu Sun, and she is cautious about pushing her body too far having undergone surgery on both wrists and one ankle last year, keeping her out for eight months.

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It will be a huge disappointment to ticket-holders and also to Murray, whose career was celebrated on Centre Court on Thursday after a first-round men’s doubles defeat alongside his brother Jamie.

The Scot insisted afterwards that there will be no change of heart, saying: ‘I know that it’s time now. I’m ready for that.’

He will head off on a family holiday before preparing for the final event of his career at the Olympics in Paris, where he is entered in singles and doubles with Dan Evans.

Raducanu, meanwhile, must hope the problem does not derail her Wimbledon run, with the 21-year-old now fancied to reach at least the quarter-finals.

Emma Raducanu wears an England kit during a training session at Wimbledon earlier today
Andy Murray and Jamie Murray after their defeat in the doubles at Wimbledon on Thursday
The names of Andy Murray oand Emma Raducanu are removed from the order of play today
The names of Andy Murray and Emma Raducanu are taken away after being removed today

There does not appear too much cause for alarm, with Raducanu hitting at the All England Club earlier today, although she was pictured looking uncomfortable.

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The former US Open champion again wore an England shirt ahead of the Euro 2024 quarter-final clash against Switzerland, which kicks off at 5pm today in Germany.

Among those commenting on the news was sports presenter Marcus Buckland, who tweeted: ‘Astonishing news that Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from her mixed doubles match with Andy Murray.

‘She’s citing soreness in her right wrist. It means Murray has played his last match at Wimbledon. Oh dear!’

Murray’s mother Judy Murray then responded to this, saying: ‘Yes, astonishing.’

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