Raducanu slams slippery courts in Auckland after retiring in tears

Furious Emma Raducanu criticises the slippery indoor courts at the ASB Classic in Auckland after retiring in tears when she rolled her ankle – with the Australian Open just 11 days away

• Emma Raducanu played in the ASB Classic in Auckland on Thursday
• She was forced to retire from her match after slipping and rolling her ankle
• Raducanu blamed the slippery courts for her fall after her latest injury
• She now faces a race against time to be ready for the Australian Open 

Emma Raducanu was left cursing both her luck and sub-standard courts in Auckland after yet another injury put her Australian Open hopes in jeopardy.

The British number one left the court in tears after rolling her left ankle and being forced to retire in the second round of the ASB Classic. It happened eleven days ahead of the season’s opening Grand Slam.

Adding insult to injury was the belief that the slippery indoor court she had been forced onto, due to heavy rain, was responsible for her latest mishap.

Emma Raducanu walked off court in tears after retiring from the ASB Classic in Auckland

Raducanu rolled her ankle in the second set, and has blamed the slippery courts for her injury

Unusually for her, she criticised the tournament and the surfaces inside the deserted emergency venue, which apparently had not been updated and renewed like their outdoor counterparts.

‘The courts are incredibly slick, like very slippery, so to be honest it’s not a surprise that this happened to someone,’ Raducanu told New Zealand website. She had retired at 6-0 5-7 against Slovakia’s Victoria Kuzmova.

’Auckland overall, it rained a lot this week, so I didn’t get to see much and I thought maybe certain aspects could have been organised better, but overall I had pleasant support.

’It’s out of my control and after a very long day of waiting around. But we’ll assess over the next few days and see what the next steps are.

’It’s difficult to take. I’ve put a lot of physical work in the last few months and I’ve been feeling good and optimistic.

‘So to be stopped by a freak injury, rolling an ankle is pretty disappointing, in the first week as well. I thought I was playing some pretty decent tennis.’

Raducanu has repeatedly been hit by physical ailments in the past year. This time she was competing hard and got to 5-5 in the second when she chased a ball behind the baseline and slipped as she sharply changed direction.

Two games later there was the all too familiar scene of her calling the tour physio, who strapped her left ankle after deeming that a medical timeout was required.

Raducanu received attention from the trainer, but retired at the start of the third set

Evidently she was not instructed to stop the match, and went out to begin the third set. After one point, however, she was wincing and decided that the struggle was too much. Having shaken hands at the net she left an echoing arena – no spectators could be accommodated – in tears.

It was the fifth time in twelve months that Raducanu has failed to complete a match on tour, which comes as a severe blow after optimism that her physical resilience would improve.

Unlike last year, when her off-season was wrecked by Covid, the 20 year-old from Kent has had decent preparation prior to this campaign, and a chance to catch up on the training needed to survive the rigours of the tour.

She had engaged Andy Murray’s former fitness guru Jez Green as a part-time consultant, and is also working more with her most trusted physio, Will Herbert.

He is in Auckland with her as she tries to make it for Melbourne, after showing some promising signs from her work with new coach Sebastian Sachs.

She came through an awkward first round against outstanding 17 year-old Linda Fruhvirtova in the first round and looked sharp in rolling Kuzmova 6-0 in the first set.

The Slovakian, who can be dangerous in streaks, played well in the second but Raducanu looked likely to close out the match before her latest mishap.

She opted not to play for Great Britain in the new United Cup mixed event which has kicked off the season, with the thinking was that she was likely to get more matches at a smaller WTA event. While there was an appearance fee involved for Auckland the money in the team competition would have been decent as well.

As it turns out she would have had some good opportunities playing alongside British colleagues, and not endured the poor weather affecting the Kiwi capital.

There appears no chance of her playing in Adelaide next week, and the best she can hope for is to go into Melbourne undercooked.

Raducanu could now be a doubt for the Australian Open that starts in just 11 days

At a smaller tournament in Canberra, Katie Boulter defeated Heather Watson 6-1 6-3 in an all-Brit quarter final.

If Raducanu is a doubt for the Australian Open then so is former world number one Naomi Osaka. She has yet to arrive in the country and is not entered anywhere next week.

The Japanese player has been travelling around Europe recently with her boyfriend, the rapper Cordae.

Champion in Melbourne in 2019 and 2021, Osaka has made no secret of having motivational issues, and has not played since late September.

Tournament organisers seem to be unsure of her whereabouts and intentions. They are doubtful she will turn up, although she is still entered in the first Grand Slam of the season.

Share this article

Source: Read Full Article