Wimbledon draw sets up potential Raducanu-Sabalenka clash amid British hopes and tough openers

Emma Raducanu could be on course for a huge third-round clash with world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka after the Wimbledon draw was made this morning.

Raducanu, seeded 30th, has been struggling with an injury issue ahead of the Championships, which begin on Monday, and faces a tricky opening-round match against Croatia’s Antonia Ružić. Concerns over her condition have grown after she missed a scheduled practice session on Thursday and was seen wearing a protective boot on her right foot the night before.

If she is able to get through that first test, things don’t get any easier. A second-round match against either Jelena Ostapenko or Britain’s Harriet Dart could await, with the added possibility of an all-British meeting depending on results. Beyond that, a potential showdown with Sabalenka looms large which would be a repeat of last year’s meeting at the All England Club, where Raducanu pushed the top seed before losing 7-6 (8-6) 6-4.

Sabalenka, who is still chasing a first Wimbledon title despite her status as world No 1, starts her campaign against Serbia’s Teodora Kostovic.

There are plenty of other eye-catching ties in the women’s draw. Defending champion Iga Świątek begins against Taylor Townsend, while Britain’s Katie Boulter takes on 18-year-old American Tyra Grant. Fran Jones faces France’s Diane Parry, and wildcard Mika Stojsavljevic has been handed a particularly tough opener against world No 12 Belinda Bencic.

In the men’s draw, Jack Draper has arguably one of the stand-out first-round matches, coming up against sixth seed Taylor Fritz. It’s a rematch of a rivalry that has already seen them face each other five times on tour, with Draper narrowly edging the head-to-head 3-2.

Novak Djokovic, the seven-time Wimbledon champion, begins against China’s Yibing Wu, and could face Stefanos Tsitsipas as early as the second round in a repeat of the 2023 final, although Tsitsipas has slipped to world No 88 after a difficult year.

Djokovic finds himself in a stacked section of the draw that also includes defending champion and world No 1 Jannik Sinner, Daniil Medvedev and third seed Félix Auger-Aliassime. Sinner starts his title defence against Miomir Kecmanović, with a potential quarter-final against Medvedev if seedings hold.

On the other side, Alexander Zverev has what looks like a slightly kinder draw on paper, but it could still get tricky quickly with the likes of Ben Shelton, Taylor Fritz and Alex de Minaur all lurking in his bracket. De Minaur is still searching for a breakthrough Grand Slam run beyond the quarter-finals, while Fritz is projected to meet Zverev in the last eight.

Elsewhere for the British players, Cameron Norrie opens up against 17-year-old qualifier Michael Zheng, while Arthur Fery faces Damir Džumhur and Toby Samuel has been drawn against 15th seed Jakub Menšík.