Emma Raducanu has pulled out of the Miami Open due to injury. It is a fresh blow to her hopes of revitalizing her career on the WTA Tour following an injury-stricken 2023 season. The Brit was set to face Wang Xiyu, a former junior grand slam champion in the first round on Tuesday. Before falling victim to a lower back issue.
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Raducanu gave a good account of herself at the Indian Wells Masters earlier this month. It’s the tournament in which she enjoyed her best run in 2023.
Having cruised past Spaniard Rebeka Masarova 6-2 6-3, Emma registered a walkover win over Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska as she led 4-0 in the first set.
The 21-year-old’s reward was a challenging clash with Aryna Sabalenka in the round of 32. She produced a hard-fought display in defeat, falling 3-6 5-7 to the reigning Australian Open champion.
The world No. 288 would have travelled to Miami in high spirits. Owing to the fact that lost just one first-round match in five tournaments so far in 2024.
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Injury Sidelines Emma Raducanu, Halting Her Quest for a Masters Quarter-Final
Emma was believed to have been out on the court for practice around 11:40 a.m. local time on Monday. She was spotted in Miami Gardens as late as less than an hour before news of her injury broke.
However, the Canadian born Raducanu’s wait to reach the quarter-finals round of a Masters tournament for the first time will have to wait due to her latest injury setback.
Emma Raducanu returned to the United States in 2022. She came back as the 11th seed following her incredible 2021 US Open victory months earlier.
Nevertheless, she lost to the Czech Republic’s Katerina Siniakova in the first round. She also suffered another exit at the opening hurdle last year against Canada’s Bianca Andreescu.
And it wouldn’t have been smooth sailing this time around, either. Xiyu is currently ranked world No. 56. She achieved her first WTA Tour trophy by winning the 2023 Guangzhou Open on home soil.
The Chinese reached the final of the ATX Open in Texas earlier this month. But she tasted defeat against compatriot Yuan Yue.
The 22-year-old then wasted a set lead to crash out of the Indian Wells first round against France’s Clara Burel. But Xiyu has a strong track record on the hard court.
Her best Grand Slam performance came in the 2022 US Open. The left-handed reached the third round at Flushing Meadows after earning a shock triumph over third seed Maria Sakkari. However, she lost to Alison Riske-Amritraj in the subsequent match.
As for Raducanu, she will begin the work to regain fitness and return to the court. Her aim should be to ensure that her 2024 season is better than last year.
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