Jacob Fearnley has played only two tournaments in the past two months because of a rib injury, while Francesca Jones has endured a “tough” season in which she suffered a head injury in the gym.
Emma Raducanu delayed the start of her season because of the bruised foot which cut short her 2025 campaign, then has been set back in the past two months by a viral infection.
Katie Boulter has avoided injury this season, although she arrives at Roland Garros having recently been laid low by flu, while French Open qualifier Toby Samuel has been racking up victories on the Challenger tour after missing most of 2024 with an arm injury.
The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) internally audits the injuries suffered by British players and says there is no repeat pattern.
“I don’t necessarily think there’s one reason for all,” said Boulter.
“Everyone is an individual case. It just seems to be that everything has happened at once.”
Jones agreed the flurry of issues is simply “bad luck”, pointing to the injuries suffered across the tours and suggesting the packed calendar is the root of the problem.
As well as Draper, several other star names are missing from the men’s draw.
On Saturday, French 19th seed Arthur Fils – who many feel has the potential to end France’s 43-year wait for a home men’s singles champion – withdrew because of a hip injury.
Fils, 21, says he did not want to “be stupid” after playing through pain at his home major last year, which led to the aggravation of a back injury and more than six months off tour.
Two-time champion Carlos Alcaraz is already missing with a wrist injury commonly caused by the repetition of ball-striking, while Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti – a semi-finalist last year – was ruled out with a thigh problem.
