Wimbledon 2019: Katie Boulter withdraws from tournament due to ongoing back injury
Boulter missed the French Open last month and has not recovered in time to play at Wimbledon
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Your support makes all the difference.British No 4 Katie Boulter has withdrawn from Wimbledon after failing to recover sufficiently from a back injury.
The 22-year-old has been struggling with the injury since April and was forced to withdraw from the French Open a day before it got underway last month, which saw her paid about £20,000 despite not hitting a single ball.
However, she would not have been entitled to any money at Wimbledon unless she entered the draw, and the Leicester-born player announced on Twitter that she has taken the decision not to play at SW19 in order to continue her recovery.
“As you are all aware, I’ve recently been recovering from a back injury that I suffered during Great Britain’s Fed Cup victory back in April,” Boulter wrote.
“The road to recovery has had its ups and downs; at various points along the way I’ve been very close to getting back on court and competing, but unfortunately I’m not quite ready in time for Wimbledon, and on the advice of my medical team, I’ve therefore made the decision to give my recovery a couple more weeks.
“I am absolutely devastated to be missing my home Grand Sam and the opportunity to play in front of our incredible fans but sadly I won’t be 100 per cent fit. Wimbledon is the most special tournament of the year for me and I can’t wait to get back on the grass courts next year. I’d like to thank everyone for their support over the past few months; it’s only motivated me to come back stronger.”
Boutler won her first Grand Slam singles match at Wimbledon last year on a run that saw her rise to British No 2 and inside the top 100 of the world rankings, but her injury-enforced absence has since seen her fall behind domestic rivals Heather Watson and Harriet Dart, along with No 1 Johanna Konta.
While Konta was the only British female in the French Open draw, the world No 18 will be joined by Watson, Dart and Katie Swan in the Wimbledon first round due to being given wildcards.
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