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Emma Raducanu addresses shocking Wimbledon retirement
Emma Raducanu of Britain reacts during the women's singles fourth round match against Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia at Wimbledon. Xinhua

Emma Raducanu addresses shocking Wimbledon retirement

British teenager Emma Raducanu began this year's Wimbledon Championships ranked No. 338 in the world but became arguably the face of the women's draw by notching three consecutive victories. However, the 18-year-old shockingly retired from her fourth-round match against Ajla Tomljanovic on Monday after she appeared to deal with breathing issues. 

On Tuesday, Raducanu thanked supporters for their well-wishes and explained what happened on the court via a message she shared on social media platforms.

According to Tom Hamilton of ESPN, Raducanu also told the BBC her match being delayed until the late-evening hours did not impact her. 

"I think I was prepared to go out there whatever time of day was required," she said. "I was so excited. I didn't find a problem with it at all. Just to have the opportunity to go on Court 1 was something I cherished, and there was no problem."

Raducanu continued: "I don't know what caused it. It was a combination of everything that has gone on behind the scenes in the last week and the culmination of the excitement and buzz, and it's a great learning experience for me going forward. Hopefully next time I'll be better prepared."

All-time tennis great John McEnroe has received widespread criticism after he said Monday night he believed the occasion "just got a little bit too much" for Raducanu.

Raducanu dropped the first set versus Tomljanovic and was down 0-3 in the second when she called for a medical timeout. Tomljanovic was awarded the victory shortly after but then fell to world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty on Tuesday. 

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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