Emma Raducanu finally makes tennis  comeback after 259 days out, with 21-year-old British star relaunching her career after injury nightmare

Emma Raducanu has made her long-awaited return to competitive tennis after a 259-day absence.

The British star, who won the 2021 US Open, was dogged by injury and worked tirelessly to bounce back and relaunch her career against Elena-Gabriela Ruse in Auckland.

The 21-year-old looked confident as she smiled and waved to the crowd as she was announced before the match.

Raducanu's inactivity in recent months means she has fallen to a lowly 298th in the world rankings.

But the talent that made her a star on the big stage was immediately apparent to those watching the Auckland Classic clash.

Raducanu started well in an even match, but pulled away in the first set to claim the score at 6-3. Most importantly, there were no signs of adverse effects from the three operations performed.

She went under the knife to correct two wrist problems and a problem with her left ankle after finishing her season last year.

And after receiving a wildcard into the same event where she ended up in tears last year after rolling her ankle, Raducanu was full of excitement ahead of the event.

She said: 'I feel reborn in a way. I feel fresh, ready, happy, excited. Overall I feel positive and lighter.

'I actually think I'm a better tennis player than before the break. In practice over the past few weeks I have been hitting the ball very well.

'Physically I push things that I didn't do before. I really have confidence in my body, which is very nice and I also feel good tennis-wise.'

She added: “It was so hard, especially the first few months.

'When you're so used to being active and moving all the time, suddenly everything is cut off from you.

'I had two wrists and a foot injury, so I couldn't even use crutches. It was hard being so immobile. But it rekindled the fire to compete again.”