Draper and Raducanu eager to end bruising injury cycles

Britain's fragile frontrunners begin 2026 with persistent physical problems hindering their paths to the top

-  Jack Snape

From the moment news of Great Britain’s planned team for the United Cup was announced in October, jokes began to fly.

On paper, it was a dream. Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu, the top tennis players in the country and figureheads of a new generation, finally united on the same side of the court.

However, recent history has shown that things are never straightforward with Britain’s two greatest hopes. Both players have had to navigate injuries and physical problems in their young careers, so to some fans and onlookers the real question was which player would withdraw first. Draper won that race, but on the first day of the 2026 season neither player was physically prepared to take to the court.

On Sunday, Raducanu withdrew from her scheduled season opener against Naomi Osaka after being sidelined for much of her off-season with a foot injury. She eventually took to the court for Great Britain’s second tie against Greece, where she faced the former world No 3 Maria Sakkari. She handled herself well enough and did not appear to have any issues with her foot. But between her struggles to find her timing early on and how she rapidly faded physically in set three, her lack of preparation caught up with her.