Emma Raducanu branded 'selfish' and 'pathetic' after letting Andy Murray down at Wimbledon

Wimbledon fans have been up in arms at Emma Raducanu after she pulled out of playing mixed doubles with Andy Murray in what would have been his final appearance at the Grand Slam.

Raducanu issued a statement hours before the British pair were due to play on Court 1, explaining that after her victory in the third round on Friday she woke up the following day with soreness in her wrist and felt the need to withdraw.

The 21-year-old had surgeries on both wrists and her ankle last year but supporters have described Raducanu as "selfish" and "pathetic" on social media after hearing the news of her decision.

Many fans had queued from the early hours of the morning to watch Murray play for possibly the last time at SW19, with his mother Judy also astonished, as several supporters took aim at Raducanu online.

On X (formerly known as Twitter) @jenifermoorebfc wrote: "#Raducanu pulls out 'injured'. Hardly new/news. Pathetic."

Their sentiments were echoed by @Bruce1patsy who posted: "The sick note Raducanu strikes again!! Probably just protecting herself because she's done okay in the singles! Selfish!"

While @auscricketfan33 compared the situation to Roger Federer's retirement at the Laver Cup, when Murray reunited with Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal to play with the Swiss legend one final time.

"When Federer called Rafa about his retirement, he put his entire career/fitness on the line to make sure he was there for his farewell," they wrote. "Played his last match with him to the best of his ability and those two are the sport's greatest rivals. Raducanu's selfish for this #Wimbledon"

Others protested that Raducanu "dumped Andy Murray in it" as he was not able to call in a replacement at such short notice, with @IANWRIG67924256 adding: "Shame it's all over. Raducanu the selfish little wimplet has pulled out & dumped Andy Murray right in it."

@MrsLarsson similarly shared: "Emma Raducanu is the most unsporting sportsperson so far this year. #WIMBLEDON #selfish"

However, Raducanu has received backing for prioritising her fitness, having also skipped the clay court season to focus on her health ahead of Wimbledon.

@NovakDjokerFans wrote: "Okay but think fr and without flogging your brain, Raducanu is finally playing decent in singles and finding her energy - risking her body to play some emotional match, a day before her R16 match isn’t sensible and she has to put herself first in this case."

Also coming to Raducanu's defence, @Shumbo_Jebang posted: "Sad to hear Raducanu has pulled out the mixed doubles therefore ending Murray’s Wimbledon career but she has to do what’s right for her when she’s in such a good position."