Wimbledon has granted wildcards to a lineup of tennis stars, including former Grand Slam champions Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, Angelique Kerber and Emma Raducanu, as they gear up for the prestigious grass-court tournament beginning on July 1.
Osaka, a four-time major champion and former world No. 1, along with three-time Grand Slam winner Kerber, made their comeback from maternity leave at the start of this season, adding to the excitement surrounding this year’s event.
Currently ranked 113th, Osaka was the only player to take a set from top-ranked Iga Swiatek at the French Open and followed that up with a quarterfinal spot last week in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, a warm-up event for Wimbledon.
Former U.S. Open champion Raducanu made her breakthrough at Wimbledon by advancing to the fourth round in 2021. She will be playing there for the first time in two years after undergoing wrist and ankle surgery in 2023.
Kerber won the 2018 Wimbledon title and was the runner-up at the All England Club in 2016. She is also a former top-ranked player.
Wozniacki returned from maternity leave last August. She has never advanced past the fourth round at Wimbledon, where she will be playing for the first time since 2019.
British players Francesca Jones, Heather Watson and Yuriko Miyazaki were also included in the initial list of invitations. One main draw wildcard remains to be allocated. Seven British players have been invited to play in the men’s draw, including last year’s junior champion, Henry Searle.
