The TV presenter Anne Diamond has been criticised for calling Emma Raducanu’s decision to drop out of a mixed doubles tournament with Andy Murray “unforgivable”.
The 21-year-old tennis champ announced on Saturday (6 July) that she had pulled out of the match with Murray due to stiffness in her right wrist – this, however, meant that what would have been Murray’s final Championships match was cancelled. Instead, his defeat alongside his brother Jamie in the men’s double on Thursday (4 July) would now be recognised as his last ever match.
Diamond, who found fame on the Eighties chat show Good Morning Britain and is currently a presenter on GB News, was appearing on the channel when she criticised Raducanu. At one point she compared the player’s decision to Rishi Sunak’s heavily condemned decision to leave a D-Day event early in June.
“Just speaking as a fan, I was really looking forward to it,” Diamond said. “I also see it as a giant snub from a young girl, who has got a future ahead of her, yes – but he is the king of Wimbledon.”
Diamond added: “I’m not rooting for her anymore. I’m so sorry, I was yesterday – I was so keen and absolutely behind her, and now this. To me, this is like Rishi Sunak going back from the D-Day beaches early. I think it’s unforgivable.”
On X, many argued that Diamond’s remarks were overblown.
“It’s Wimbledon, not the Andy Murray farewell tour,” one person wrote.
Another added: “Leave the poor girl alone. Murray retired before, then came back, had [a] huge reception on Thursday night so he can have no complaints. Just hope Emma has switched off to all this unwarranted hate.”
A third person wrote: “Emma has to put her own Wimbledon ambitions first. I usually like Anne Diamond but this was an ill informed comment.”
Raducanu’s decision to pull out of the match has sparked much attention this weekend, with Murray’s mother Judy referring to the move as “astonishing” on X. She later clarified that her post was not meant as a criticism of Raducanu, writing: “Not sure anyone understands sarcasm these days. Pretty sure the scheduling (4th match court 1 with a singles following day) will have played a major part in any decision making.”
Raducanu herself said in a statement that she was “disappointed” to make the “very tough decision” to withdraw, but that she had to prioritise her singles match.