Fran Jones forced to retire from French Open qualifying due to injury

By Sports Desk May 24, 2023

Fran Jones’ hopes of making a first French Open appearance are over after she was forced to retire during her second qualifying round.

The Briton, who suffers from a congenital condition which means she has three fingers and a thumb on each hand, three toes on one foot and four toes on the other, was left in tears as she had to retire due to an apparent shoulder injury during the first set of her clash with Ylena In-Albon at Roland Garros.

Jones, currently ranked 316 in the world, had beaten former grand slam semi-finalist Coco Vandeweghe in her opening round and had enjoyed some encouraging results on the ITF circuit prior to the main clay-court in Paris.

She joins Heather Watson and Katie Swan in heading out of qualifying as the British pair lost in Tuesday’s first-round qualifying.

A host of other Brits are in action later on Tuesday as they hope to continue their journey towards the main draw.

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