Carlos Alcaraz insists Emma Raducanu did what most tennis players would do by pulling out of Wimbledon mixed doubles with Andy Murray over a wrist problem. The British tennis star caused a stir by withdrawing hours before what was going to be Murray’s final match at SW19.
Raducanu cited stiffness in her wrist for pulling out of the match, which was scheduled for late on Saturday evening. She had her fourth-round singles match scheduled for the next day, with the chance of reaching a first-ever Wimbledon quarter-final.
Reigning men’s champion Alcaraz points out that most players would have made the same decision. However, he accepted that Murray would have been disappointed.
“Well, it is a difficult situation. I'm not going to lie. Obviously she said she was going to play mixed doubles against Andy Murray, his last Wimbledon of his career,” the Spaniard said in a press conference after beating Ugo Humbert in four sets.
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“But obviously she's young. I'm sure that she didn't want to pull out from the mixed doubles. I think she had her reasons to do it. I guess physical problems.
“I don't know. I mean, she's facing the fourth round of a Grand Slam, Wimbledon. I think it is special for her playing here in England.
“I'm sure that a lot of players who is in her positions could do the same thing as she [did]. But obviously knowing it's his last Wimbledon of Andy Murray, is difficult to deal with [for him].”
Raducanu faced apparent criticism from Murray’s mum Judy. The 64-year-old said that the news of her withdrawal was “astonishing” on social media, but has now claimed that she was being sarcastic and blaming the scheduling.
Having undergone two surgeries on her wrist - and one on her ankle - last year, Raducanu insists she had to prioritise her fitness.
“It was a very difficult decision,” the 21-year-old said after her defeat by New Zealand qualifier Lulu Sun. “Of course, I didn’t want to take his last match away from him.
“But at the end of the day I think a lot of the players in a similar situation would have done the same thing, prioritising their body. I still stand by making the right call.
“Obviously he was disappointed because it’s his last match. But, yeah, what a champion. I think that hopefully he’ll play in the Olympics and have another farewell there.”