Wimbledon, June 16: Former champion Goran Ivanisevic has been forced to pull out of Wimbledon for a second successive year. The 2001 singles winner suffered a knee injury while practising with Croatian team-mate Mario Ancic earlier this week. The knock ruled him out of the Samsung Open in Nottingham, which is due to start on Monday. And now the 31-year-old has decided he will not be fit in time for Wimbledon which begins on 23 June. Ivanisevic has struggled with a catalogue of injuries since winning the Wimbledon title. He took part in the Stella Artois Championships at Queen's Club last week, losing in the first round to Jan Vacek. Meanwhile, former women's world number one Monica Seles has also withdrawn due to continuing problems with her foot. The American, who was runner-up to Steffi Graf in 1992, had struggled at the recent French Open where she lost in straight sets to Russia's Nadia Petrova in the first round.

Former Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson is another to pull out, as he has failed to recover from a knee injury that has kept him out of the first two Grand Slam events of the year in Australia and France.

Argentina's Mariana Diaz-Olivia and Anne Kremer, of Luxembourg, have also withdrawn and former men's world number one Marcelo Rios is also out. But British number four Martin Lee will compete at the All England club after taking the remaining men's singles wildcard.

Lee will also compete in the doubles alongside Miles Maclagen.

Bureau Report