Simona Halep will not defend her Wimbledon title after withdrawing from the tournament on Friday due to a calf injury sustained last month, becoming the latest high-profile player to miss the grass court Grand Slam.
Halep ended her European claycourt swing early after suffering the calf injury during her Rome Open second round match against Angelique Kerber in May. The Romanian subsequently withdrew from the French Open and the Bad Homburg Open, which would have acted as her tune-up event for Wimbledon.
"It is with great sadness that I'm announcing my withdrawal from The Championships as my calf injury has not fully recovered," Halep, who won the title when Wimbledon was last held in 2019, said on Instagram.
"I gave it everything I had in order to be ready to play Wimbledon and after having such special memories from two years ago, I was excited and honoured to step back on these beautiful courts as defending champion.
"Unfortunately, my body didn't cooperate and I'll have to save that feeling for next year."
Halep won Wimbledon - her second Grand Slam title - with a superb performance to defeat Serena Williams 6-2, 6-2. She was denied a chance to defend her title when Wimbledon was cancelled last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
She joins world No 2 Naomi Osaka in withdrawing from the grass court Grand Slam with the Japanese also skipping Wimbledon following her withdrawal from Roland Garros due to mental health issues.
In their absence, Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka will climb up to be the No 2 seed behind top-ranked Australian Ashleigh Barty with the singles draw for both men and women to be held later on Friday.
"I can honestly say that I'm really down and upset about having to take this decision," Halep, 29, said. "This period has been difficult but to miss the last two majors has made it even more challenging mentally and physically.
"We will see what the future holds but I'm hoping it will make me a stronger person and athlete."
The men's draw has also seen high-profile withdrawals due to injury and fatigue. World No 3 and two-time champion Rafael Nadal pulled out of Wimbledon and ruled himself out of the Tokyo Olympic Games, while US Open champion Dominic Thiem was forced to withdraw after sustaining a wrist injury at the Mallorca Championships earlier this week.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
INDIA SQUAD
Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The years Ramadan fell in May
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House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
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Cricket World Cup League Two
Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Fixtures
Wednesday January 8 –Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 – Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 – UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
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Drivers’ championship standings after Singapore:
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes - 263
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari - 235
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes - 212
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull - 162
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari - 138
6. Sergio Perez, Force India - 68
Results
Light Flyweight (49kg): Mirzakhmedov Nodirjon (UZB) beat Daniyal Sabit (KAZ) by points 5-0.
Flyweight (52kg): Zoirov Shakhobidin (UZB) beat Amit Panghol (IND) 3-2.
Bantamweight (56kg): Kharkhuu Enkh-Amar (MGL) beat Mirazizbek Mirzahalilov (UZB) 3-2.
Lightweight (60kg): Erdenebat Tsendbaatar (MGL) beat Daniyal Shahbakhsh (IRI) 5-0.
Light Welterweight (64kg): Baatarsukh Chinzorig (MGL) beat Shiva Thapa (IND) 3-2.
Welterweight (69kg): Bobo-Usmon Baturov (UZB) beat Ablaikhan Zhussupov (KAZ) RSC round-1.
Middleweight (75kg): Jafarov Saidjamshid (UZB) beat Abilkhan Amankul (KAZ) 4-1.
Light Heavyweight (81kg): Ruzmetov Dilshodbek (UZB) beat Meysam Gheshlaghi (IRI) 3-2.
Heavyweight (91kg): Sanjeet (IND) beat Vassiliy Levit (KAZ) 4-1.
Super Heavyweight ( 91kg): Jalolov Bakhodir (UZB) beat Kamshibek Kunkabayev (KAZ) 5-0.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: CVT
Power: 170bhp
Torque: 220Nm
Price: Dh98,900
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
