Cameron Norrie arrived at the French Open this week unable to practice, hampered by a rib injury that has put his participation in serious doubt. His first-round match against Paraguay's Adolfo Daniel Vallejo is scheduled for Tuesday.
According to BBC Sport, Norrie injured himself during his Geneva Open loss to Argentina's Mario Navone on Wednesday and now regrets not stepping off the court earlier. "It is a small problem with my rib. I overdid it with the preparation and not listening to my body and my mind," Norrie told BBC Sport. "I probably should have retired. I kept pushing because I had never retired before in a match in my career, so I wasn't sure what to do. But I'm here. Luckily I'm scheduled on Tuesday, so it gives me some time to get ready."
Norrie is seeded 22nd at Roland Garros and reached the fourth round there last year. He has reached at least the third round in 15 of the past 20 major tournaments, building a reputation as the most reliable British player at Grand Slams over the past five years. He carried the British flag at 14 Grand Slams across those five years, including the Australian Open in January.
The injury adds to a difficult picture for British tennis at this year's French Open. Jack Draper, who overtook Norrie as British number one in 2024, has been ruled out entirely with a knee injury. It was the latest setback for Draper, who had only recently returned from nearly six months out with bone bruising in his serving arm.
Sonay Kartal, who broke into the top 50 last year, has missed the entire clay-court season with a back injury. Emma Raducanu delayed her 2026 season start because of a bruised foot and has been further set back by a viral infection in the past two months. Jacob Fearnley has played just two tournaments in the past two months because of his own rib injury. Francesca Jones has described a tough season that included a head injury suffered in the gym. Katie Boulter avoided injury but arrived at Roland Garros after a recent bout of flu. Qualifier Toby Samuel missed most of 2024 with an arm injury.
Six British players are in the French Open singles draws this year. Most have spent significant portions of the season dealing with health issues.
Norrie addressed his own situation plainly. "We'll see how we can get myself ready to play and give it everything on Tuesday. If not, it's not the end of the world," he said.
