Daniil Medvedev to miss Wimbledon as Russian and Belarusian players are banned from the tournament

This summer’s Wimbledon will be contested without Russian and Belarusian players, including men’s world number two Daniil Medvedev and women’s fourth seed Aryna Sabalenka.

Players from the two nations have been permitted to compete on the ATP and WTA Tours under a neutral flag, despite the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. 

However, Wimbledon organisers have taken a different course of action following talks with the UK Government and the Lawn Tennis Association.

Thanks to its independent tournament status, the All England Club is able to implement such ban without the risk of legal repercussions.

The biggest name set to miss out is Russia's Daniil Medvedev, who reached the fourth round of the event last year.

The US Open champion is continuing to chase Novak Djokovic for the world number one spot, and missing the Grand Slam could have a profound impact on his ambition to lead the world rankings.

Daniil Medvedev in action

Aryna Sabalenka, of Belarus, is the highest ranked female player to be effected by the ban. The 23-year-old reached the Wimbledon semi-final last year when she lost in three sets to Karolina Pliskova.

World number 15 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and two-time Wimbledon semi-finalist Victoria Azarenka are two other big names set to miss out.

Andrey Rublev, who has climbed to eighth place in the world rankings, will also miss the tournament.

Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in action

As things stand, Russian and Belarusian players are still able to compete at the French Open, which gets underway on May 22. Wimbledon, on the other hand, starts a month later and runs from June 27 to July 10.

UK sports minster Nigel Huddleston has previously called for the ban to be implemented, arguing that athletes from the two named nations should prove they are "genuinely neutral" and also provide assurances they don't support or receive money from Russian president Vladimir Putin, nor his government.

He also said: "Absolutely nobody flying the flag for Russia should be allowed or enabled."

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