Emma Raducanu's next tournament confirmed as Brit back in time for French Open

Emma Raducanu is planning to make her comeback at next week’s WTA 500 event in Strasbourg, less than two weeks after her sudden withdrawal from the Italian Open. The world No. 30 has not played a match in more than two months due to post-viral illness. She attempted to return in Rome earlier this month, but pulled out less than an hour after completing her pre-tournament media duties and telling reporters she had “turned a corner”.

The Brit now plans to compete at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, which gets underway on Sunday, after accepting the top 30 replacement spot. Raducanu is then expected to head to the French Open, where she will be unseeded and at risk of facing a top player early on.

Raducanu also entered Strasbourg last year, beating Daria Kasatkina in her opening match but falling to Danielle Collins in the second round. Victoria Mboko and Paula Badosa are among those who will also compete in the WTA 500 event this year.

The tournament confirmed her participation on social media, writing: “Welcome back, Emma ! The 2021 US Open champion will be back on the clay courts in Strasbourg. The first player to come through the qualifiers to win a Grand Slam, Emma made history in New York in 2021. Can't wait to see her back on the courts.”

The 23-year-old is currently projected to drop outside of the world’s top 35 after missing the Italian Open, where she reached the fourth round last year. Any extra ranking points Raducanu earns in Strasbourg won’t be added until the standings update on Monday, May 25. And with the French Open draw to be made on Thursday, May 21, this means her results at the upcoming WTA 500 event won’t help her get seeded in Paris.

The British No. 1 has not played a match since the beginning of March, when she lost to Amanda Anisimova in Indian Wells. She has since withdrawn from events in Miami, Linz, Madrid and Rome.

However, Raducanu was able to provide an update on her fitness when she headed to the Italian Open, hoping to give herself a chance to compete before her sudden withdrawal. “Post-viral, it’s quite hard. You feel drained, you feel tired, no energy,” the former US Open champion explained.

“It’s difficult and it lingered for quite a while. Right now, I wouldn’t say I’m 100 per cent. I’m still building my way back. It is difficult to then kind of maintain it, even if your tennis level is very high, it’s difficult to maintain for the full duration of the match, so I think it was good to come here and practise and see how I’m doing in points and the sharpness of that is also another thing to just get your eye in for.”

Given her extended absence from the tour, it wouldn’t have been a surprise if Raducanu skipped the rest of the clay season entirely and focused on grass. She has never been beyond the second round of the French Open, while she has reached WTA Tour-level semi-finals on grass and made it to the second week of Wimbledon.

But the world No. 30 explained in Rome that she didn’t want to shy away from the clay. “I think playing on the clay, getting any time on the clay for me, I’m not necessarily thinking everything for the grass,” she said. “Because I know in the years to come, every time, every week that I get on the clay courts, it’s going to help me for the future and longer term.”

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