Tennis news: Queen's rocked as fourth star withdraws while Jack Draper dealt blow

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We'll be back bright and early to bring you more from Queen's, Berlin and beyond.

We'll see you then...

It was also a positive day for Jacob Fearnley, who continues his own exciting rise.

The British star overcame Australia's Alex Bolt inside the Andy Murray Arena, winning 6-2 6-4.

Dan Evans has spoken further on his surprise victory over Frances Tiafoe.

Evans had fallen to No. 199 in the world rankings, losing in points in part over his decision to accept playing doubles with Andy Murray at last summer's Olympics.

He defeated Tiafoe at the Andy Murray Arena at Queen's Club.

“I didn’t really think anything of it when I was put first on,” said Evans. “But then a few people mentioned it, that I had finished with him in his last match and then played the men’s event, the first match. It was pretty cool to do that.”

Dan Evans has hit back at ‘top, top stars’ complaining about the packed schedule.

The British star points out that lower-ranked players must play in as many tournaments as possible to fund their careers.

Several big-name players have complained that the tennis calendar has grown too busy.

Evans insisted: “Everybody is entitled to their opinion on the schedule, but the tour has been like that for however many years. The top, top guys schedule properly, and that's what's part of the issue… How people schedule, how many weeks they want to play, how many weeks they don't want to play.

“Me personally, I see the weeks before Grand Slams are way stronger than they were maybe ten years ago. There [are] more top players playing. I don't know if that's to try and pick up cheap points, but, there are these massive teams now. They are allowed to have some input into it. There are loads of weeks in the year you can take off or train or whatnot. That's up to them.

“Anybody outside the top 15 don't have those views, because the bottom line is anybody outside the top 15 need to play every week. People need working opportunities. If you are at 60 in the world with more than two people on your staff each week, you need to make money.

“So you can't just not have tournaments every week. They need tournaments. That's it. Can't just listen to the top guys on scheduling. Just because they are better than us at tennis doesn't mean their voice is louder to talk.

“That's what I'll say. I'm more than happy to have the conversation with whoever wants it.”

Judy Murray has sent a touching message to Dan Evans after his triumph at Queen's today.

Evans sacrificed many ranking points to play with Andy Murray in the British icon's tournament at last year's Olympics.

And the respect is clearly mutual as Andy's mum, Judy, tweeted: "I love that it was Evo who opened play on the Andy Murray Arena - first match in the men’s event @QueensTennis - and even more that he won. Fitting."

Mirra Andreeva was a set up against Magdalena Frech in Berlin.

But she went on to lose 6-2 5-7 0-6 in another disappointing spiral.

Just like in her French Open defeat against Lois Boisson, Andreeva lost her cool on a couple of occasions.

Jakub Mensik was superb in that deciding set.

The 19-year-old defeats Cameron Norrie 7-6 1-6 6-1.

Cameron Norrie has overcome that first-set setback.

He races through the second set, winning it 6-1.

His clash with Jakub Mensik is now down to a decider...

Cameron Norrie has suffered a significant setback at Queen's.

The Brit was serving for the first set in his match against Jakub Mensik.

But the Czech star ended up winning the first set in a tiebreak.

Norrie has it all to do now...

Mirra Andreeva has taken the first set in her Berlin Open clash.

She leads Magdalena French 6-2 after a positive start in Germany.

Novak Djokovic has his eyes set on the 2028 Olympics as he bids to defend his gold medal.

By the time the Games head to Los Angeles, Djokovic will be 41.

He insists that being primed for the next Olympics motivates him more than winning Grand Slams.

"The only thing that at this moment, professionally speaking, I have in my vision at this point," Djokovic said.

"And it's interesting when we talk about these achievements and the Olympics that stand out and redemption, the only thing that I have in my head, which gives me motivation, is the Olympics of 2028 in Los Angeles.

"And playing for the national team and Grand Slams. But not even the Grand Slams, not as much as the Olympics."

Emma Raducanu is officially Britain's top-ranked female player for the first time in two years.

She has overtaken Katie Boulter in the latest edition of the WTA rankings, which were updated on Monday.

Raducanu climbed one spot and is now ranked 36th in the world, with Boulter slipping five positions to 39th.

Dan Evans has beaten Frances Tiafoe in straight sets to defy the odds and reach the next round at Queen's Club.

The veteran Brit was the underdog heading into the match but pulls off a brilliant upset to secure a 7-5 6-2 victory.

Tiafoe, who reached the quarter-finals of the French Open earlier this month, bows out with a whimper.

Dan Evans has just taken the first set against Frances Tiafoe as he bids to reach the second round.

Nuno Borges has also drawn first blood in his meeting with Roberto Bautista Agut.

Their opening set went to a tiebreak with the man from Portugal prevailing over his Spanish rival.

Matteo Arnaldi has become the latest player to withdraw from the men's tournament at Queen's Club.

He was scheduled to face Holger Rune later today but will not be playing due to an ankle injury.

Lucky loser Christopher O’Connell will replace the Italian in the draw.

It comes after Tommy Paul, Lorenzo Musetti and Matteo Berrettini pulled out of the tournament last week.

Jack Draper has fallen outside the top four in the ATP rankings following the latest update on Monday.

The young Brit is now ranked sixth, with Taylor Fritz moving up to fourth after winning the Stuttgart Open.

Ben Shelton, meanwhile, appears in the top 10 of the ATP rankings for the very first time.

Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz continue to lead the way with a massive gap to Alexander Zverev in third place.

Coco Gauff is looking to move past her French Open triumph in order to give herself the best chance of Wimbledon glory.

Speaking on the Nice Talk with Nikki Ogunnaike podcast, the American explained that she was trying to forget about what happened in Paris.

She said: "I think I can give myself the best shot [of winning Wimbledon] by trying to keep the moment as minimised as possible.

"I'm kind of trying to forget the Roland Garros win, honestly."

Jack Draper is adamant that he can reach the level of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner after watching their French Open classic.

"Can I get to that level? Yeah, I think so," said the young Brit.

"The tennis they were playing, I think that was a combination of them two together. I think it was the moment they were in.

"My friend said to me when we were watching them play: 'How are they playing this way after five hours?'.

"And I said: 'I don’t think they are thinking about anything. I think they are just thinking about playing'.

"I don’t know what I’m capable of yet, but I aspire to be at that level. What those guys are doing is setting the way and changing the game.

"Players like myself are going to be working very hard to get to that point, that’s 100 per cent for sure."

Simona Halep has announced that she will return to the court next year for a farewell outing in Romania.

The 33-year-old, who recently confirmed her retirement from tennis, will play the final match of her career at next summer's Sports Festival.

The final years of Halep's career were marred by a lengthy suspension after testing positive for doping at the US Open in 2022.

She initially received a four-year sanction, which was later reduced to nine months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Nick Kyrgios has sold a luxury penthouse in Sydney for $1,925,000 (£921,372).

It saw him make a tidy profit, having initially purchased the property for around $1,600,000 (£765,856) in 2022.

It was originally listed in May with a guide price of $1,800,000 (£861,750), with the sale going ahead the day before it was scheduled for auction.

Kyrgios' decision to sell comes amid personal changes, including his recent split with his former girlfriend Costeen Hatzi.

Jamie Murray sayd brother Andy now regrets not taking a break after Grand Slam wins in the way that Carlos Alcaraz now does.

“I like the way he (Alcaraz) does it,” Jamie told The Tennis Podcast. “In tennis, the season is so long, and there’s so many events to play that it’s easy to have your success and immediately start looking to the next event, and not take the time to enjoy your success in that moment. I think Andy, at times, regretted that when he looked back, he’s like, 'I wish I’d enjoyed that moment more'. I’m glad that he’s enjoying his time in the moment that it has come for him."

Andrey Rublev has said he wants to keep being coached by Marat Safin as he prepares to play the Terra Wortmann Open in Halle this week.

Admitting the pair were still negotiating a long-term deal, he said: "I'm satisfied and would like to continue working with Marat. Everything should be okay, we've talked a little, but we still have a few details to sort out.

"We're still working on it, but it looks like everything will be fine."

According to Tovima, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Novak Djokovic had dinner together in Athens on Friday.

The Serbian icon's wife, Jelena, accompanied him on the trip. The couple reportedly visited several private schools in the city, amid speculation that they are set to relocate with their family.

Jannik Sinner has held his first training session since his French Open final defeat and is now positive over his Wimbledon chances.

The world No.1, who will play on grass in Halle next week, said: “The first practice session was ok. I hadn’t played since Paris, so my general feelings on the court were not so perfect.

“I think a good grass-court player can move well. The ball can bounce a bit funny because of the grass, and you have to serve intelligently. But in general, it is a surface on which I took a step forward last year and we will see how it goes this year.”

Three-time Grand Slam champion Angelique Kerber has given birth to her second child nearly a year after retiring.

The 37-year-old called time on her career at the Paris Olympics and is now a mother of two - Liana and Ben.

In February, Kerber was announced as the new tournament director for the WTA 500 tournament in Bad Homburg between June 23-29. She is still expected to fulfil that role.

The order of play has been confirmed for the first day of the HSBC Championships at Queen’s tomorrow - with a number of Brits in action. Here it is in full…

Andy Murray Arena (12pm)

Frances Tiafoe vs Dan Evans

Holger Rune vs Matteo Arnaldi

Cameron Norrie vs Jakub Mensik

Jacob Fearnley vs Alex Bolt

Court 1 (12pm)

Roberto Bautista Agut vs Nuno Borges

M. Arevalo/M. Pavic vs R. Opelka/B. Shelton

T. Fritz/J. Lehecka vs A. de Minaur/A. Popyrin

Malcolm McDonald vs Gael Monfils

Court 5 (3pm)

D. Evans/H. Searle vs R. Bopanna/S. Gille OR Y. Bhambri/R. Galloway

Elise Mertens has won the Libema Open by defeating Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-3, 7-6 (4) in the final.

The 29-year-old Belgian captured her 10th career WTA Tour singles title and her first on grass, and now owns titles on all three of the major playing surface.

Mertens saved 11 match points in her semi-final win over Ekaterina Alexandrova - the most match points saved by any player in a tour-level main-draw match this decade.

Taylor Fritz has beaten Alexander Zverev in straight sets to win his first ATP title of the season.

The American claimed a 6-3 7-6 (7-0) victory after being held up by a lengthy rain delay early in the second set. Last year's US Open runner-up lifted his first trophy since winning in Eastbourne 12 months ago, also on grass.

Carlos Alcaraz has revealed he is still “in shock” that he saved three match points in the French Open final - and he has watched video replays to “believe” his miracle escape.

The Spanish superstar won a five-set epic against world No.1 Jannik Sinner in Paris last week.

And he became only the third man after Gaston Gaudio in the Open Era to save at least one Championship point before winning a Grand Slam singles title.

The world No.2, who will play the HSBC Championships in Queen’s Club this week, said: “The bad thing in tennis is sometimes you don't have time to realise what you have done. It is pretty close, everything.

“But I've been talking with my friends sometimes, I've been watching the videos and been watching highlights from that match and when that moment comes, the love-40, I still can’t believe that I came back from that moment and that I won at the end of that match.

“Sometimes it difficult to realise that from this position that I won Roland Garros. I still watch the videos and am still in shock sometimes.

“But at some point, I had to calm myself and then realise that I did it.”

Tatjana Maria gave an emotional speech after becoming the oldest woman to win a WTA Tour title since Serena Williams in 2020.

The German, 37, hugged her children in a tear-jerking moment and then said: "My husband is really special. He’s an amazing husband & coach.

"Doesn’t matter how it goes, we always stick together. To our beautiful girls, Charlotte & Cece, I love you both."

Tatjana Maria is Queen's champion, beating Amanda Anisimova 6-3 6-4.

History has been made - what an achievement and performance from the 37-year-old!

Tatjana Maria has claimed the opener 6-3, and is just one set away from history.

A reminder - Maria, 37, is looking to make history by becoming the oldest winner of a WTA 500 event.

The final has got going between Amanda Anisimova and Tatjana Maria, with the latter looking to make history.

It's Anisimova on serve.

Rafael Nadal was quizzed on how he felt watching Carlos Alcaraz vs Jannik Sinner in the French Open final.

And the Spaniard didn't appear too jealous that he was no longer involved in these showpiece matches.

Chatting to the ATP Tour, he said: "I don’t feel like I would have liked to be there. I watched the tournament like any other fan, excited to see a place that was so important during my career and simply enjoying the tennis.

"This is my new reality, I don’t look beyond that."

Robin Soderling, who played against all three of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, has made a big claim.

After watching the French Open final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, he suggested that the pair played at a higher level than the aforementioned trio.

He said on Instagram: “When you thought tennis had reached its highest potential with the Big Three. These guys just took it to the next level.”

But his comments didn't go down too well with tennis fans...

Emma Raducanu isn't too fussed about being unseeded for Wimbledon.

After her Queen's exit, she has pulled out of the Berlin Open with a back injury but should be fit for Wimbledon. However, as she has withdrawn from the event in the build-up, she won't be in the top 32 by the time SW19 comes about and will therefore not be seeded.

However, she believes it may help her development not being seeded.

Novak Djokovic has hinted when he could retire from tennis as he looks to end his career on a special high.

Victory in the Grand Slams has eluded him for a couple of years now, as Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz take over the mantle at the top of the men's game.

But Djokovic still has his eyes set on glory, claiming his motivation stems from the opportunity to become a back-to-back Olympic champion.

Rafa Nadal has heaped praise on Jannik Sinner for his reaction to his heartbreaking French Open final loss.

Sinner had three championship points while leading 2-0 in sets against Carlos Alcaraz in the final, but the Spaniard remarkably went onto win at Roland Garros in a final for the ages.

And now Nadal has praised Sinner for the character he showed in the immediate aftermath of his agonising loss.

"The Roland Garros final was exciting and spectacular. Carlos finished with a trophy in his hands after Jannik stood on the verge of winning. It was a match we will all remember for the rest of our lives.

"I feel sorry for Jannik because, despite the difficulties of the match for him, he had an impeccable attitude and almost won," Rafael Nadal said.

Renowned tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou has discussed Novak Djokovic's current struggles, with the 38-year-old having not won a Grand Slam since the 2023 US Open.

Djokovic was knocked out of the French Open in straight sets by Jannik Sinner in the semis, and the Serb watched on as Carlos Alcaraz won a thriller against the Italian in the final.

"It's not about the tennis, it's more about the mental side of it," he said on his Instagram account. "I felt he did accept a little bit too much the dominance of Sinner on him, which is not Novak. I didn't see Novak I know, and I still think his motivation is not high enough. It's there, but I don't know where it is exactly."

He added: "Everybody was fan of Roger, everybody was fan of Rafa, everybody was saying they were the best players in the world, and he wanted to prove that he was the best.

"I think that was something that really drove him. He lost his drive for the reason that he's the greatest."

Happy Sunday everyone - and welcome back to our live tennis blog.

It's the women's final at Queen's today, with Amanda Anisimova taking on Tatjana Maria, who is looking to become the oldest ever winner of a WTA 500 event at the age of 37.

The showpiece event gets underway at 1:30pm later.

Meanwhile, some of their ATP counterparts are busy trying to book their spot in the main draw of Queen's through qualifying ttoday, with the likes of Corentin Moutet in action from midday.

Jannik Sinner has admitted that a week on, he still thinks about the match points he wasted during his French Open final loss to Carlos Alcaraz in Paris.

Sinner was painfully close to winning before succumbing to an unbelievable comeback from Alcaraz at Roland Garros.

“It was for sure a tough loss. Looking back, I still think about those couple of points. And it won’t stop here. I know that,” said the 23-year-old who is playing in Halle next week.

“But in another way, I am happy to be here, I’m happy to start a new tournament – I think this helps me get back into match rhythm and let’s see how I’m gonna react.

“You can’t see the negative side, but you can still see the positive side.”

Emma Raducanu has explained the back problem that has seen her pull out of the Berlin Open.

The same issue - recurring back spasms - hampered her during her Queen's Club defeat yesterday when she required an off-court medical timeout in the second set

And the Brit says she needs rest to conquer the problem.

"It’s been lingering for the last few weeks, and I have had back issues before. I think it’s just a vulnerability of mine," she said.

"I know I need to take good care of it. I’m not overly concerned that it’s something serious, but I know it’s something that’s very annoying and needs proper and careful management."

After back-to-back top 10 wins to reach the final of Queen's, Amanda Anisimova is relishing her time in London ahead of her first ever grass final.

She said after beating Qinwen Zheng: "Super happy and grateful. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without my amazing team over there.

"They’ve been pushing me and we’ve been having a lot of fun. Just enjoying the process. The crowd here has been amazing. Really excited to be in my first grass court final.

"Especially here. I love playing in London."

It's Amanda Anisimova who will go up against Tatjana Maria in tomorrow's final at Queen's Club.

The American beats No.1 seed Qinwen Zheng 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 to reach the first ever final of her career on the grass.

German qualifier Tatjana Maria said it was a "dream come true" to reach the Queen's final after she stunned Madison Keys.

The 37-year-old is now oldest woman to reach a WTA 500 final, and wrote wrote "OMG finals" with a smiley face on the camera lens after her triumph.

She said:"I cannot believe it, it's a dream come true. It's amazing to play in front of you all, such a special place. I could not wish for a better tournament to be in the final and I'm so proud."

The final is set at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart. Top seed Alexander Zverev gets the better of Ben Shelton 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-1) and will face second seed Taylor Fritz.

The American beat Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) and the two will go head-to-head at 11am tomorrow morning UK time.

The winner will take home £640,000 in prize money with Fritz having won all of the last four meetings between the pair including at the US Open and Wimbledon last year.

The first Queen's finalist has been determined - and it's a surprise!

The No.2 seed and Australian Open champion Madison Keys loses in straight sets to Tatjana Maria.

The German, 37, wins 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) and will face either Qinwen Zheng or Amanda Anisimova tomorrow.

Emma Raducanu has suggested that the chair umpire should have done something about Qinwen Zheng repeatedly halting their Queen's quarter-final match.

Raducanu was dumped out of the tournament on Friday as Zheng romped to a straight-sets victory, with the Brit seeing her rhythm interrupted by several unexpected delays.

The crowd grew increasingly frustrated with Zheng, and a few even booed as she stopped the match three times to tend to issues with her racket and shoes.

"I think the fact it happened three times on my serve, I feel like maybe something could have been done [by the umpire]," said Raducanu. "But I'm not going to get into it."

Elise Mertens notched an absolutely remarkable win this afternoon, saving 11 match points to defeat Ekaterina Alexandrova in three gruelling sets.

Mertens was one point from defeat a seemingly endless number of times but saved her skin on every occasion and came away with a 2-6 7-6 6-4 win.

The third seed will now prepare for the final of the Libema Open, where she will play either Elena-Gabriela Ruse or Elisabetta Cocciaretto on Sunday.

Dan Evans and Cameron Norrie have both been given tough first-round draws at Queen's.

Evans will play seventh seed Francies Tiafoe, with Norrie coming up against eighth seed Jakub Mensik.

Jack Draper will play Jenson Brooksby in the first round, and his projected path to the final includes possible meetings with Alexei Popyrin in the second round, Tiafoe in the quarters, Alex de Minaur or Taylor Fritz in the semis, and Carlos Alcaraz in the final.

Top seed Alcaraz will play Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the first round after a party holiday in Ibiza.

Emma Raducanu has pulled out of next week’s Berlin Open after suffering more back issues at Queen's.

But the British No. 1, who now has little hope of getting a seeding at Wimbledon, is still planning to play Eastbourne the week before the start of the year's only grass-court major.

The former US Open champion first suffered back spasms before the Australian Open in January and they flared up again at the Strasbourg Open last month.

Raducanu, 22, needed a medical timeout for treatment and took painkillers during her quarter-final defeat against Qinwen Zheng at Queen's.

Stefanos Tsitsipas has admitted that his relationship with dad Apostolos became 'toxic' while he was still part of his coaching set-up.

The pair went their separate ways last year, and Tsitsipas insists the decision has made a positive impact on their family dynamic.

"Our relationship has actually gotten better over the last couple of months," he said. "It was very hard and difficult in the beginning when we split. It was very hard for him to accept that he’s not part of my inner circle anymore.

"It reached a point before where tennis got too much in the way. And, as bad as it sounds, I think it became even toxic in a way because I felt like he was constantly hunting.

"He’s still my father and he’s still someone that remains dear and close to me. He's an amazing person in my life, because he's done so many sacrifices, and he's done so much work."

Nick Kyrgios bit back at a social media user who told him to 'get back on the practice court'.

The Aussie has been largely inactive since 2022, with a string of injury issues derailing his career.

During an Instagram Q&A session, one user wrote in: "You need to get back on the court and get off Instagram, bro."

Putting humility to one side, Kyrgios responded: "I think I'll continue to do what I want. This my house in the Bahamas and being on Instagram here is amazing [laughing emoji]."

Emma Raducanu addressed her back problems after crashing out of Queen's on Friday.

The Brit was beaten in straight sets by Qinwen Zheng as she suffered a flare-up of a recurring issue.

And she admits it is a 'vulnerability' of hers which needs careful attention ahead of Wimbledon.

"I have been struggling with my back since Strasbourg, and it's just been something that's been on and off," she said.

"I think it's just a vulnerability of mine. I know I need to take good care of it. I'm not overly concerned that it's something serious, but I know it's something that's very annoying and needs proper and careful management."

Rafael Nadal's uncle believes that Carlos Alcaraz has the talent and the circumstances to surpass his nephew's achievements in tennis.

Nadal retired with 22 Grand Slams - the second-highest total of all time in the men's game.

Alcaraz has already won five major titles at 22 years old, and uncle Toni believes that the fact he is not competing with Roger Federer and a prime Novak Djokovic will work in his favour.

He said: "Alcaraz is a player who currently has the best conditions in the world. He is fast, has a strong forehand and backhand. But he also has one big advantage - he did not play against the best Federer and the best Djokovic, unlike my nephew.

"He has a great rival in [Jannik] Sinner, but the others... are not so terrible. Can he match Rafa? Maybe even overtake him. I'm not a prophet, but it has all the prerequisites."

Just the two women's draw matches at Queen's today as we gear up for the semi-finals.

Tatjana Maria and Madison Keys are first up, before Qinwen Zheng and Amanda Anisimova take to Andy Murray Arena.

The first match is scheduled to begin at 1.30pm (BST), with the second following soon afterwards.

There are also a handful of men's qualifiers in the offing, with three British hopefuls in the mix.

Andy Murray took on the unfamiliar role of agony aunt in a recent experiment by the LTA.

The former world No. 1 sat down with members of the public to offer advice on everyday problems - and it led to some interesting interactions.

One woman asked Murray for advice about maintaining a healthy relationship after moving in with a partner.

He said: "I'm saying this from a man's perspective, maybe you could tell him this, I've found that helping out with little things like putting the dishes away, putting the dishwasher on, goes a very long way."

Romance speculation is gathering pace around Emma Raducanu after a familiar face was spotted in her corner at Queen's.

Alongside coach Nick Cavaday and agent Thomas Houchin was college tennis star Benjamin Heynold.

Raducanu is only two years younger than Heynold and they have known each other for most of their lives.

According to The Daily Mail, 'friends suggest that their long friendship may have turned into a romance'.

Last year Raducanu split from Robert Agostinelli - the former head boy of an exclusive private school and son of a business tycoon.

Hello and welcome to Express Sport's Tennis LIVE!

Get yourselves settled in for an intriguing day ahead as we bring you all the latest news from Queen's and beyond.