Emma Raducanu will have been absent from competitive tennis for over two months after her late withdrawal from the Italian Open.
Credit: Robert Prange/Getty Images
Late withdrawal from the Italian Open raises serious doubts about whether Emma Raducanu will be fit enough to compete at Roland Garros.
This year, Emma Raducanu was one of the first players to arrive at and leave the Foro Italico in Rome. She arrived early, hoping to test her fitness and readiness for high-level tennis through practice sessions on the heavy red clay of the Italian Open. As she logged hours on court and her scheduled first-round match on Thursday approached, it seemed reasonable to expect her first appearance in two months. Instead, her time away from the courts will stretch beyond that period.
Things are rarely straightforward for Raducanu, as shown by the nature of her withdrawal in Rome. She pulled out just 30 minutes after giving little indication of that intention during a press conference. The past few months, as usual, have been filled with speculation about her health, making her appearance in Rome at least a chance for clarity on her recent struggles. But the way she exited only raised more questions.
Emma Raducanu suddenly withdraws from Italian Open after press conference
Still, Raducanu did explain the nature of her post-viral illness, which has troubled her for two months. She tried to push through a virus in February, but by March the symptoms had not gone away. “Post-viral, it’s quite hard, you feel drained, you feel tired, no energy, it’s difficult and it lingered for quite a while,” she said. “Right now I wouldn’t say I’m 100%. 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.”
On Tuesday evening, Raducanu was also asked if she had considered skipping the clay-court season entirely, as she controversially did in 2024, and focusing on grass. Her view on clay, her least favourite surface, has changed: “I’m not necessarily thinking everything for the grass, 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. And it’s great for game development, for physical development, using your legs in a different way and loading. And I think it’s good for me as a player to be on the clay and spend time on it.”
Katie Boulter’s French Open preparation suffered a setback after she lost in the first round of the Rome Masters to Eva Lys. Boulter (pictured) could not build on a strong second-set comeback at the WTA 1000 event, falling 4-6, 6-3, 4-6 to Lys, who had been a practice partner for Emma Raducanu in Italy before Raducanu withdrew on Tuesday. The defeat for British No. 3 Boulter continues a mixed clay-court campaign, following a quarterfinal appearance in Rouen and a second-round exit in Madrid. After Lys won five straight games to take the first set, Boulter trailed 3-0 in the second before mounting a strong fightback. However, she could not capitalise on that momentum at the start of the third set, losing serve three times and losing after two hours and 24 minutes.
Nevertheless, the clay-court season is nearly over. The start of the Italian Open signals the imminent arrival of Roland Garros. With two weeks in Rome, there is only one tournament week left on the WTA Tour before the French Open. Raducanu is hoping to receive a late wildcard for the event.
