Jessica Pegula withdraws from Queen's Club Championships, among names delaying start to grass swing

There have been some notable names withdrawing from Queen's Club Championships. The biggest of them all is the world number five Jessica Pegula who will not make her debut in the second edition of the tournament after it was brought back.

The American has enjoyed a very fruitful 2026, reaching at least the quarter-final in every tournament until the Madrid Open. Notable results included a semi-final run at the Australian Open which was backed up with a fourth WTA 1000 title in her career, this one at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Quarter-finals in the Sunshine swing was culminated with a title at the Charleston Open, defending her title from last year. She was stunned in the third round of the Madrid Open to Marta Kostyuk, a second defeat to the Ukrainian in 2026 following a last-eight loss in Brisbane. She was thrashed by Iga Swiatek in Rome before the first round one exit at Roland Garros experienced since 2020 brought an end to her 2026 clay swing in frustrating fashion.

Grass is the next port of call for Pegula who has had time to re-assess and prepare with Roland Garros still prolonging into its final stages. She has since made the decision to withdraw from Queen's and delay the start to her grass swing.

The American is set to defend her title won last year in the Bad Homburg Open with a lot of points to be won at Wimbledon after a surprise defeat in the first round last year. She will lose the chance to gain any points in London, opting to compete in Berlin before the playing at SW19.

Pegula is the latest to withdraw from this WTA 500 tournament. Hailey Baptiste suffered a very nasty injury at Roland Garros, ending her 2026 season and subsequently ruling her out of Queen's. The world number 12 Linda Noskova have opted to withdraw, delaying the start to their grass swing in the process.

Cristina Bucsa, Zheng Qinwen and Karolina Pliskova all stepped in. However, Bucsa then withdrew which allowed Alexandra Eala to step in and compete in a bizarre and chaotic scenario.

World number two Elena Rybakina was a late inclusion. Last year's finalist Amanda Anisimova and Victoria Mboko are the other top 10 competitors with Belinda Bencic, Iva Jovic and Leylah Fernandez all featuring. Marta Kostyuk, Diana Shnaider, Anna Kalinskaya and Sorana Cirstea all reached at least the quarter-final in a gruelling French Open campaign and may have second thoughts about competing.