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Johanna Konta appreciates support from fans after Wimbledon withdrawal

Johanna Konta has thanked fans for their messages of support after she was ruled out of Wimbledon by a member of her team testing positive for Covid-19.

The British number one, who was seeded 27, was forced to withdraw on the eve of the tournament, with organisers announcing late on Sunday evening that she had been classified as a close contact of a positive case.

A member of Konta’s three-strong team of fiance Jackson Wade, coach Dan Smethurst and fitness coach Gill Myburgh showed Covid symptoms on Sunday morning and a subsequent PCR test returned a positive result.

The 30-year-old, who will now be required to spend 10 days in self-isolation, said in a statement posted on Twitter on Monday: “I would like to thank everyone for their kind messages and continued support and I look forward to seeing you all on court again soon.”

Konta had played herself into form on the grass by winning her first title for four years in Nottingham two weeks ago before withdrawing from tournaments in Birmingham and Eastbourne in order to rest her troublesome knee and ensure she was in prime shape for Wimbledon.

She had been due to face Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday.