Leading players at Wimbledon begin their latest protest of tournament prize money and will limit their media appearances on the eve of the Championships.
Wimbledon’s announcement of record prize money at this year’s tournament was initially welcomed by star names on the men’s and women’s tours as a “genuine and significant step forward” –
Top players from the men’s and women’s tours, including defending champions Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, will limit their contractual media commitments to a symbolic 15 minutes, starting with the pre-tournament press conferences.
Wimbledon’s prize money , the players want their share of revenues at the grand slams to reach 22 per cent, and believe their share of this year’s revenues is set to stand at less than 15 per cent.
Elsewhere, Emma Raducanu is managing a niggle and emerged as an injury doubt ahead of the start of Wimbledon after the British No 1 was seen wearing a protective boot this week. Raducanu is due to speak to the media this weekend.
Wimbledon LIVE: Latest tennis news
- Wimbledon stars begin media protest as prize money row continues
- Leading players to start cutting their media commitments to 15 minutes
- Player protests come after Wimbledon’s record prize money announcement
- British No 1 Emma Raducanu ‘managing a niggle’ ahead of Wimbledon
- Serena Williams, 44, drawn to play Maya Joint on Wimbledon return
Jannik Sinner times his press conference, cuts answers short
11:30 , Jamie Braidwood
Jannik Sinner said he “wanted to talk about tennis” as the defending Wimbledon champion cut his pre-tournament press conference short.
It was announced by the press conference moderator that Sinner would be timing his press conference, as players stage their prize money protest, and the world No 1 limited his appearance to around 10 minutes, answering questions in English, Italian and German.
Sinner there had been “improvements” in the discussions on prize money after Wimbledon announced a 20 per cent increase, but refused to answer a further question about the changes he would like to see around player welfare.
Defending champion Jannik Sinner’s route to Wimbledon title
11:10 , Jamie Braidwood
Reigning champion Jannik Sinner returns as the top seed – with Carlos Alcaraz absent due to injury – and will face Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic as he begins his title defence. Seventh seed Novak Djokovic is a possible semi-final opponent for the Italian.
R1: Kecmanovic
R2: Borges
R2: Buse (31)
R4: Darderi (14) / Jodar (23)
QF : Medvedev (8) / Ruud (11) / Paul (21)
SF: Novak Djokovic (7)
F: Alexander Zverev (2), Ben Shelton (4), Taylor Fritz (6)
Confirmed order of play on day one and tournament schedule
10:55 , Jamie Braidwood
Defending men’s Wimbledon champion Jannik Sinner will open play on Centre Court against Miomir Kecmanovic while Novak Djokovic, Aryna Sabalenka and Emma Raducanu will also be in action on day one of the Championships.
Sinner, the favourite to defend his title with two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz absent, has not played a match since his shock second-round exit from the French Open last month, which came while the Italian was feeling unwell in the intense heat.
The men’s No 1 has been drawn in the same half of the draw as seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic, who begins his latest bid for a 25th time grand slam title against China’s Wu Yibing at the age of 39.
Sabalenka, the women’s No 1, also begins her campaign against Teodora Kostovic, while a potential third-round rematch with British No 1 Raducanu could await later in the tournament.
Raducanu, who lost to Sabalenka in the third round of Wimbledon last year, came into the tournament with a slight injury worry and plays Croatia’s Antonia Ruzic, on her favoured No 1 Court, in her first match.
Meet the 21 British players at Wimbledon: ‘It’s been a dream since I started playing’
10:55 , Jamie Braidwood
From grand slam champions to underdogs ranked outside the world’s top 300, these are the home players who will be taking to the grass at SW19 in the singles draws
British players in the draw – men’s singles
10:25 , Jamie Braidwood
- Cameron Norrie (26) v Michael Zheng (Q)
- Shintaro Mochizuki (Q) v Max Basing (Q)
- Brandon Nakashima (28) v Jack Pinnington Jones (WC)
- Felix Gill (WC) v Rafael Jodar (23)
- Arthur Rinderknech (25) v Oliver Tarvet (Q)
- Karen Khachanov (19) v Billy Harris (Q)
- Jakub Mensik (15) v Toby Samuel (WC)
- Damir Dzumhur v Arthur Fery (WC)
- Taylor Fritz (6) v Jack Draper
- Alex Michelsen v Jacob Fearnley (WC)
- Vit Kropiva v Jan Choinski
- Valentin Royer v Harry Wendelken (WC)
British players in the draw – women’s singles
09:55 , Jamie Braidwood
- (WC) Mika Stojsavljevic v Belinda Bencic (11)
- Fran Jones v Diane Parry
- Emma Raducanu (30) v Antonia Ruzic
- (WC) Harriet Dart v Jelena Ostapenko
- Alicia Parks v Alicia Dudeney (WC)
- Barbora Krejcikova v Hannah Klugman (WC)
- Irina-Camelia Begu v Katie Swan (WC)
- Katie Boulter v Tyra Grant (Q)
- Mimi Xu vs Daria Kasatkina
Jack Draper’s daunting Wimbledon draw followed by Eastbourne Open disappointment
09:25 , Edward Elliot
Jack Draper’s daunting Wimbledon draw was followed by disappointment at the Eastbourne Open as he suffered a semi-final exit at the hands of Ugo Humbert.
The 24-year-old discovered on Friday morning he will face world number seven Taylor Fritz in the first round at the All England Club after an injury-ravaged year left him unseeded.
He was then denied a place in the final at Devonshire Park as he slipped to a 7-5 6-3 loss to sixth seed Humbert in an hour and 42 minutes.
While the defeat dashed Draper’s hopes of securing a maiden ATP title on home soil, he can take confidence from a promising week on grass following a year disrupted by injury.
Why is Carlos Alcaraz not playing Wimbledon?
08:55 , Jamie Braidwood
Wimbledon will be a quieter place this year without the talents of two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz.
The 23-year-old Spaniard is not playing this year’s tournament as he continues to recover from a wrist injury.
Alcaraz initially made the decision to skip the defence of his French Open title after withdrawing from the Barcelona Open in April due to pain in his right wrist.
He then confirmed he would be missing the entire grass-court season, with a possible return planned ahead of the US Open later this summer.
When is Serena Williams playing at Wimbledon?
08:35 , Jamie Braidwood
Serena Williams will play Australia’s Maya Joint, the world No 53, in the first round of Wimbledon as the seven-time champion returns to the Championships and singles action for the first time in four years.
Williams, 44, lost in the first round to Harmony Tan on her last Wimbledon appearance in 2022 and has made a stunning comeback to the sport this month, receiving a wildcard into the doubles with her sister Venus Williams and, sensationally, into the singles as well.
Emma Raducanu ‘managing a niggle’ ahead of Wimbledon
08:15 , Eleanor Crooks
Emma Raducanu is due to open her Wimbledon campaign against Croatian Antonia Ruzic but fitness doubts surround the 30th seed, who could again meet Aryna Sabalenka in the third round in a repeat of last year.
Raducanu did not turn up for her scheduled practice session on Thursday having reportedly been seen wearing a protective boot the previous evening.
The British number one’s team confirmed she is managing a niggle and concerns grew when she did not appear on the practice schedule for Friday.
Raducanu is due to speak to the media at a press conference on Saturday.
Wimbledon prize money: Men’s and women’s singles
08:10 , Jamie Braidwood
First round – £80,000
Second round – £126,000
Third round – £185,000
Fourth round – £300,000
Quarter-finals – £480,000
Semi-finals – £900,000
Runner-up – £1.8m
Winner – £3.6m
Overall increase from 2025: 22%
Player protests come after record prize money announcement
08:05 , Jamie Braidwood
Earlier this month, the All England Club announced record prize money for this year’s tournament, confirming their biggest ever uplift in prize money and increasing the overall prize pool by 20 per cent. Wimbledon’s prize money now stands at an overall £64.2m; the breakdown of which sees the singles champions win a record £3.6m each and first-round losers receiving £80,000.
The players have been pushing for a greater share of revenues for well over a year, and want a revenue-sharing formula to be established and written into any future prize money announcements.
The players want their share of revenues at the grand slams to reach 22 per cent, the figure they receive at some events on the ATP and WTA Tours, by 2030, and had written to Wimbledon to propose a 16 per cent cut for this year. That would have seen their prize money increase further, to £71m.
Wimbledon prize money protest explained: What do tennis players want?
08:00 , Jamie Braidwood
Leading players at Wimbledon will stage a week of protests as the row over prize money at the grand slam tournaments continues.
Top players from the men’s and women’s tours, including defending champions Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek, will limit their contractual media commitments to a symbolic 15 minutes per match day during the first week of the tournament. This will include post-match press conferences and interviews with TV rights holders. The action will begin at across the pre-tournament press conferences on Saturday and Sunday.
