Four days before her SW19 title defense begins, defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, who has a thigh injury, has left Eastbourne.
In both of her south coast matches, the Czech defeated Britons Jodie Burrage and Harriet Dart, going one and two sets, respectively.
Before the match even started, she canceled and had to face France’s Varvara Gracheva.
Krejcikova, a two-time major singles champion, first felt the problem on Wednesday and said it “got worse” overnight.
The 29-year-old said, “I’m very sorry to have to withdraw because I’m having some soreness in my right thigh.”
“I believe it’s better to rest up and watch what’s happening and figure out what’s wrong with Wimbledon in the coming days,” he said.
After a protracted layoff with a back injury, Krejcikova, who is the defending women’s champion, has only played six matches this year. She will open play on Tuesday at Wimbledon.
She saved match points against Dart and Burrage after losing her first-round encounter with Queen’s last week.
Jofra Archer is in line for a first Test appearance in more than four years after being named in England’s 15-man squad for next week’s match against India at Edgbaston.
The 30-year-old made a thrilling start to international cricket in 2019 but has not played a Test since 2021 after a series of injuries.
A recurring stress fracture in his elbow has required multiple operations, while a stress fracture in his back ruled him out of an entire summer in 2022. Archer returned to white-ball cricket in early 2023 but when the elbow issue returned he missed the summer once more.
Archer is the only addition to an otherwise unchanged squad from England’s thrilling first-Test win at Headingley. The second Test in Birmingham begins on Wednesday.
For Archer and England this is a significant moment.
His recovery has been carefully managed – until this month a diet exclusively of white-ball cricket – in the hope he could work towards a return this summer and in the Ashes against Australia this winter.
Archer played his first red-ball match since May 2021 this week and returned figures of 1-32 from 18 overs in the only innings Sussex bowled on their trip to Durham.
After bowling in whites for the first time in 1,501 days, he said he felt ready to return to Test cricket.
“Yeah. I guess so,” he said.
“I just want to get through the game. I’m glad I’ve finished a day of four-day cricket.”
Archer was viewed as a generational talent after he made his international debut six years ago.
He bowled the deciding super over in England’s World Cup win and later that summer bowled an electric spell of short bowling to Steve Smith in the Ashes, which ended when the Australia batter was hit in the neck and had to retire hurt.
Archer took 22 wickets at 20.27 across four Tests in that series and 42 from 13 Tests overall, including three five-wicket hauls.
His elbow problems began the following winter, however, when he was ruled out of a Test in South Africa with discomfort.
Archer’s return eases pressure on an England fast-bowling department that has been hit by a number of injuries.
Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, Olly Stone, Josh Hull and the uncapped Sonny Baker have all been sidelined.
Archer joins Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Sam Cook and Jamie Overton as fast bowlers in the squad.
Woakes, Carse and Tongue played in the win at Headingley and England could be tempted to stick with the same XI at Edgbaston.
After the win in Leeds, former England captain Michael Vaughan told Test Match Special: “The good thing is that Jofra is back in the equation – but I’d like to see him play another four-day game.
“He’s not played the longer format for four years so why, on the back of one game for Sussex against Durham, would you rush him back?
“We know the intensity at Test-match level is so different to county cricket. Let him play another four-day game – I would go with the same line-up, as long as the bowlers are fine and there are no niggles.”
Sussex coach Paul Farbrace, also a former England assistant coach, told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra: “He bowled with good pace, good accuracy and his body’s in good shape which is fantastic
“We would all love to see Jofra playing for England because he makes England a much better team, and he would give them a much better chance of winning the big series.
“Let’s look after him, let’s be careful with him. All I will report back to them is that he bowled nicely, he looks like he’s in good rhythm, he’s bowled 18 overs and it’s up to them whether they pick him.”
One scenario could be for Archer to sit out the Edgbaston Test, spend the week around the England team, then be available for the third Test at Lord’s the following week.
Analysis – The moment that has been waited for
This is the moment England, their supporters and Archer have waited so long for, one that seemed so unlikely to arrive.
The excitement around Archer, even before he made his England debut, was immense. When he pulled on the Three Lions, he delivered. His exploits in the 2019 World Cup and Ashes that followed more than lived up to the hype.
What followed were false dawns, mis-management, injuries and misery. When Archer was ruled out of the home Ashes series in 2023, a Test return seemed impossible. Few would have blamed him for walking away to become a franchise freelancer.
Painstakingly and meticulously, Archer has battled back. He deserves immense credit for his desire to rebuild a Test career. England have stuck by him, contract after contract, in the hope their loyalty would be rewarded with more Test wickets.
In Archer’s first iteration as a Test cricketer, England were starved bowlers of his high pace. Now, they have a number who can hit 90mph and above. It remains to be seen if he is the same red-ball bowler as before and where he fits into the attack.
The debate over whether Archer should have played again for Sussex is a moot point. Their next game is this Sunday and he would have been unlikely to play back-to-back Championship matches. They do not have another until 22 July.
According to George Tunah, the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) caretaker chairman in Bayelsa State, the National Executive Committee is not a constitutionally able to choose or remove party national officers.
Tunah made this comment on the morning brief on Thursday during an interview with The Morning Brief, in response to the opposition’s rejection of Senator Anyanwu’s reinstatement by the PDP’s 11 members on Wednesday.
The PDP Acting Chairman, Umar Damagum, earlier on Wednesday, announced the NEC meeting was being called off and appointed Anyanwu to the position of national secretary following a press briefing.  ,  ,
Tunah noted that there was never a 99th NEC meeting and that the party’s constitution provided for a clear notice of the meeting’s location.
A party national officer is chosen at the national convention for a secure term of years, according to our constitution. This term of office can now only be shortened through resignation, removal, or other constitutionally mandated procedures.
READ ALSO: Anyanwu’s Reinstatement, Insist On June 30 NEC Meeting, 11 NWC Members Reject Anyanwu’s Reinstatement, and Insist
The convention, not even the NEC, is our party’s only body that has the authority to appoint or remove national officers, he said.
The situation with the national convention is different now than it is with the constitution, which allows the NWC to decide matters on behalf of the NEC in cases of emergency.
No section of our constitution grants the NEC the authority to decide matters relating to the convention. He continued, “The convention must do whatever is in its power to do”, he continued.
Anyanwu Resigned without any evidence.
Further, the Bayelsa caretaker chairman added that Anyanwu had no way of knowing when he ran for governor in Imo State as the party’s candidate.
According to him, “Anyanwu resigned, and there hasn’t been a resignation letter up until this point.” An officer who seeks elected office or public office is not required to resign under our constitution.
Before he became the party’s flag bearer, Anyanwu made himself available to screening committees. Anyanwu’s resignation letter is where? You must give INEC a 21-day notice in accordance with Sections 85 and 86 of the Electoral Act for each party meeting that is intended to elect officers, remove, elect candidates for elections, approve mergers, or approve mergers.
What does it mean when a party officer resigns under Section 86 of the Electoral Act, which authorizes INEC to oversee all political party activities, you must file a report to INEC stating that the officer you came to watch the convention where he was elected has ruled. Examine the resignation letter. There was nothing like that.
Anyanwu was not reinstated as the party’s national secretary, according to the NWC’s 11 members, who asserted that only the NEC had the authority to make these decisions in a statement released on Wednesday.  ,
READ MORE: Samuel Anyanwu Resigns As National Secretary under the PDP.
The NEC is the party’s highest decision-making body, second only to the National Convention, according to the statement, “for the avoidance of doubt.” No organ, group, or individual has the authority to veto or modify the NEC’s resolution to hold its 100th meeting on Monday, June 30, 2025, as required by Section 31 (3) of the PDP constitution, which binds all organs, officers, chapters, and party members.  ,
Additionally, Damagum’s claim that Senator Samuel Anyanwu has been appointed as the party’s national secretary is false because it conflicts with NEC’s resolution.
The 100th NEC meeting, which is scheduled for Monday, June 30, 2025, has not been canceled or postponed in accordance with the above, according to the statement.
After agreeing a new five-year contract with his hometown team, England defender Myles Lewis-Skelly says he wants to “create a legacy” at Arsenal.
Lewis-Skelly made 39 appearances in all competitions before joining the first team last year, making his name as a regular under Mikel Arteta.
The 18-year-old’s previous agreement was set to expire in 2026.
In Senegal’s 3-1 defeat this month, he won a third cap for England.
“I want to win trophies on the biggest stages while also being a person who is always learning and maintains a sense of purpose, which is extremely important.”
Since making his Premier League debut against Manchester City in September, Lewis-Skelly has excelled at left-back with a license to step into midfield. Previously, Lewis-Skelly was a central midfielder in Arsenal’s academy.
The Premier League’s best record for any player with at least 15 starts saw him dribble past once was against him.
He also placed third in terms of fouls won (3. 1) and won the most duels (16) per 90 minutes.
Lewis-Skelly’s pass accuracy is fifth among players who played at least 1, 000 games last year, and it is his fifth-highest in the league.
After agreeing a new five-year contract with his hometown team, England defender Myles Lewis-Skelly says he wants to “create a legacy” at Arsenal.
Lewis-Skelly made 39 appearances in all competitions before joining the first team last year, making his name as a regular under Mikel Arteta.
The 18-year-old’s previous agreement was set to expire in 2026.
In Senegal’s 3-1 defeat this month, he won a third cap for England.
“I want to win trophies on the biggest stages while also being a person who is always learning and maintains a sense of purpose, which is extremely important.”
Since making his Premier League debut against Manchester City in September, Lewis-Skelly has excelled at left-back with a license to step into midfield. Previously, Lewis-Skelly was a central midfielder in Arsenal’s academy.
The Premier League’s best record for any player with at least 15 starts saw him dribble past once was against him.
He also placed third in terms of fouls won (3. 1) and won the most duels (16) per 90 minutes.
Lewis-Skelly’s pass accuracy is fifth among players who played at least 1, 000 games last year, and it is his fifth-highest in the league.
After agreeing a new five-year contract with his hometown team, England defender Myles Lewis-Skelly says he wants to “create a legacy” at Arsenal.
Lewis-Skelly made 39 appearances in all competitions before joining the first team last year, making his name as a regular under Mikel Arteta.
The 18-year-old’s previous agreement was set to expire in 2026.
In Senegal’s 3-1 defeat this month, he won a third cap for England.
“I want to win trophies on the biggest stages while also being a person who is always learning and maintains a sense of purpose, which is extremely important.”
Since making his Premier League debut against Manchester City in September, Lewis-Skelly has excelled at left-back with a license to step into midfield. Previously, Lewis-Skelly was a central midfielder in Arsenal’s academy.
The Premier League’s best record for any player with at least 15 starts saw him dribble past once was against him.
He also placed third in terms of fouls won (3. 1) and won the most duels (16) per 90 minutes.
Lewis-Skelly’s pass accuracy is fifth among players who played at least 1, 000 games last year, and it is his fifth-highest in the league.
