Sonay Kartal withdraws from French Open qualifying with back injury

Sonay Kartal has withdrawn from Roland Garros qualifying with a back injury, according to ESPN’s French Open preview for British players published on May 18. The withdrawal removes one of Britain’s leading women from the qualifying field before the main draw is set later this week. ESPN also said Emma Raducanu’s 2026 season has been disrupted by a lingering illness that affected her preparations for the clay-court major. Roland Garros qualifying began on May 18 at Porte d’Auteuil in Paris, with main-draw play scheduled to start on May 24. ### When did Kartal pull out, and what was the reason? ESPN reported on May 18 that Kartal withdrew with a back injury from Roland Garros qualifying. The report appeared in a tournament guide focused on British players at the French Open and identified the injury as the reason she would not continue in Paris. (msn.com) Sonay Kartal is listed by the Lawn Tennis Association as Britain’s No. 2 women’s singles player, and the LTA profile says her world ranking was No. 56 as of its most recent update on May 13. The same profile lists her career-high singles ranking as No. 44, reached in July 2025. ### Where does this leave Britain’s women before the French Open proper? (msn.com) Emma Raducanu was described by ESPN as having a disrupted 2026 season because of a lingering illness. ESPN said that issue had affected her preparation for Roland Garros, adding another injury-and-fitness concern to Britain’s women’s contingent before the clay-court Grand Slam moves from qualifying into the main event. (lta.org.uk) The British picture matters because Kartal had become one of the country’s higher-ranked women on tour. Her absence from qualifying means she will not have a chance to play into the 128-player main draw through the three-round qualifying event now under way in Paris. That is an inference from the tournament format and her reported withdrawal. (msn.com) ### What is happening at Roland Garros this week? Roland Garros began its opening week on Monday, May 18, with the first day of qualifying, according to the tournament’s official site. The official Monday wrap said play started at 10 a.m. Paris time and highlighted a series of qualifying results across the grounds. (msn.com) The official tournament schedule says qualifying runs before the main draw, which starts on Sunday, May 24. The same schedule sets the women’s singles final for June 6 and the men’s singles final for June 7. ### When is the main-draw ceremony, and why does it matter? (rolandgarros.com) Olympics.com said the men’s and women’s singles draws are scheduled for May 21 at 14:00 CEST. That draw will set the 128-player brackets and clarify which British players are in the field and where they land in the draw. (rolandgarros.com) Kartal’s withdrawal means her name will not be part of that qualifying path into the bracket. Raducanu’s status, by contrast, is tied to her preparation rather than a reported withdrawal in the material reviewed here. ### What comes next in Paris? May 21 is the next major tournament checkpoint, when the singles draws are scheduled to be made in Paris. (rolandgarros.com) May 24 is the start date for main-draw competition at Roland Garros, according to the official tournament schedule. (msn.com) Paris will then move from qualifying to the full Grand Slam field, with Coco Gauff entering as defending women’s champion, according to Olympics.com’s tournament preview. Kartal will not be part of that qualifying route after ESPN’s reported withdrawal, while attention will turn to which British players appear in Thursday’s draw and Sunday’s opening-round schedule. (msn.com) (rolandgarros.com)