Fresh fears over Emma Raducanu’s fitness, as British star pulls out of second match this week… but injury-plagued 21-year-old is still expected to play in Australian Open
- Emma Raducanu has only recently returned from a serious injury and surgeries
- The British 21-year-old star has canceled Tuesday’s practice match against Donna Vekic
- And now she has done her second recording of the week in Melbourne
A new year continues to bring familiar speculation about Emma Raducanu’s physical state, with her withdrawal for a second time in the week leading up to the Australian Open.
The 21-year-old from Kent has withdrawn from her scheduled match at the Kooyong Classic on Thursday against Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva, after canceling a planned friendly against Donna Vekic, which was due to be played on Tuesday evening.
Her representatives told organizers of Kooyong – the former Open venue in Melbourne’s suburbs – on Wednesday afternoon that she would not be able to keep her promise.
Raducanu managed to play two matches in Auckland last week and was very impressive by beating Elina Svitolina close in the second round.
After arriving in Melbourne this weekend, it is now likely that she will enter the Open draw with only those two matches under her belt, following her almost eight-month absence from the tour.
Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from another scheduled match, raising concerns
The British star has had an injury nightmare and only recently returned from a long break
However, sources close to the player suggested that this week’s non-appearances had more to do with taking care of her body after such a long break in her career, which saw her undergo three minor operations in the spring of last year.
There is still no suggestion that her name will not be in the hat when the draw takes place at 1pm local time on Thursday.
While the suggestion of an injury may ease the pressure, the latest withdrawal adds to the buzz surrounding her ahead of what will be her first Grand Slam appearance in a year.
Andy Murray started his preparations for next week by losing 6-3 7-5 in a relatively quiet match in Kooyong against fellow veteran Marin Cilic.
In the early qualifying matches for the Australian Open there were victories for Britain’s Harriet Dart and Oliver Crawford.
There is no suggestion that Raducanu will not feature in the Australian Open draw