Duo begin 2026 again troubled by physical problems and hoping this will finally be the year things change

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.

• British player ‘proud I put myself out there’ after injuries

• Billy Harris also loses to Tsitsipas in decisive tie

Great Britain fell to a bitter 2-1 loss in their decisive United Cup tie against Greece in the round-robin group stage as Emma Raducanu fought hard to overcome her injury-ravaged preparation for the new season before fading physically in her first match of the year, losing 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 against Maria Sakkari.

Raducanu’s defeat had been preceded by a courageous performance from the British men’s No 5 Billy Harris, who played one of the best matches of his career before falling 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4) to the former world No 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas. In the mixed doubles dead rubber, Neal Skupski and Olivia Nicholls defeated Despina Papamichail and Stefanos Sakellaridis 6-2, 3-6, 10-4.

• British No 1 withdraws from clash with Naomi Osaka

• Katie Swan steps in as Team GB beat Japan 2-1 in Perth

Emma Raducanu remains hopeful that she will be able to compete this week at the United Cup after her 2026 season began with a concerning false start when she was forced to withdraw from her opening match in Perth.

Raducanu pulled out of her highly anticipated clash with Naomi Osaka just an hour before play began but a significantly weakened Great Britain team admirably battled hard in the searing heat.

Spaniard resumes intense rivalry with Jannik Sinner, while Sabalenka and Swiatek remain at the top of women’s game

In the endless flood of Instagram photo dumps and gushy captions from social media users around the world saluting another year gone by, Carlos Alcaraz’s efforts were particularly interesting. The candid photos from his camera roll included dozens of friends and family, various barbecues and his many haircuts throughout the year, but there was no room for one notable individual: Juan Carlos Ferrero.

The abrupt dissolution of their partnership is one of the most shocking recent coaching splits and the reaction has been dramatic. Journalists swarmed outside Alcaraz’s tennis club in El Palmar a day after the news in their futile attempts to speak with the world No 1, then Ferrero decided to give a number of interviews to offer his own side of the story.