A tearful Ons Jabeur was forced to retire from Wimbledon through injury, less than 90 minutes into her first-round match on the opening day.
The Tunisian crowd favourite is a two-time runner-up in SW19, losing a final-set decider to Elena Rybakina in 2022 before being stunned by unseeded Marketa Vondrousova 12 months later – after which she was consoled on court by the Princess of Wales – having entered both finals as a heavy favourite.
Now 30, her search for a maiden grand slam title, having also made the US Open showpiece in 2022 where she lost to Iga Swiatek, goes on and the drought won’t end at the All England Club this summer.
Jabeur trailed 7-6 (5), 2-0 to Bulgarian world No 111 Viktoriya Tomova when she was forced to pull out, having been in tears before receiving treatment during a long medical timeout in the first set.
The former world No 2 had looked uncomfortable in fiercely hot conditions out on Court 14 and suffers from asthma, while also enduring breathing difficulties at this year’s Australian Open.
“I wasn’t expecting not to feel good,” said Jabeur after withdrawing. “I have been practising pretty well the last few days but I guess these things happen.
"I’m pretty sad, it really doesn’t really help with my confidence and what I keep pushing myself to do even though it was a very tough season for me. I hope I can feel better and see what is going to happen.”
Injuries have seen the immensely likeable Jabeur plummeted to outside the top 50 in the world rankings after a shoulder issue led to a premature end to her 2024 season and, just three months into her return, she hobbled off court in tears at this year's Miami Open after suffering a leg strain.
She is unlikely to be the only player struggling in the heat, with temperatures expected to reach 34C at Wimbledon, forcing the All England Club to institute its warm-weather policy which comes into effect when temperatures exceed 30.1C and means an extra 10-minute break between sets two and three in women’s singles and three and four in men’s singles.
All England club chief executive Sally Bolton also revealed other measures being put in place, saying: "Obviously it's a very warm day. The first obvious point to make is that the athletes compete in temperatures like this all year on the tour. For us Brits here at the championships it feels very hot. We do have the heat rule available to us, which is well used on the tour.
"Beyond that we've got protocols in place for the ball boys and ball girls on court. They've got cooling scarves, we'll be rotating them more if we feel we need to.
"For colleagues working around the grounds we've got plenty of changes in shift patterns to make sure they're getting regular breaks.
"And for the guests that will be joining us we're offering the same advice as lots of the medical professionals - come prepared, bring a hat, wear sunscreen, wear light clothing if you can, take breaks out of the sun. We've got over 100 water points around the grounds so definitely stay hydrated, and keep an eye on your friends and others around you.”
