Emma Raducanu’s troublesome start to 2023 is showing no signs of ending after she revealed the return of an injury problem which threatens to curtail her Indian Wells campaign.
The former US Open champion has told BBC Sport that she is ‘hopeful’ of playing at the WTA event this week with her first match against Danka Kovinic set to get underway on Thursday. However, Raducanu has been troubled by the return of a wrist problem which forced her to end her 2022 season early. It is unclear as to the severity of the issue but she was seen wearing strapping on both of her wrists during a practice session yesterday.
“The same issue that I had last year has stared to flare back up,” said Raducanu.
“I’ve definitely been managing my load. It’s something that has just come back, so I’m trying to be as cautious as possible.
“I’m going to do everything I can to be there tomorrow.
“I think we always play through pain and it’s just a matter of how much can you take – I’m looking forward to hopefully being out there tomorrow.”
Currently ranked 77th in the world, Raducanu is defending 65 points in Indian Wells after reaching the third round last year. The timing of the injury issue is unfortunate for the Brit who also has a golden opportunity to add to her points tally later this month in Miami after losing in the second round of that tournament in 2022.
The return of a wrist problem is the latest in a series of setbacks for Raducanu. In January she rolled her ankle at the ASB Classic in New Zealand but was able to recover in time to play at the Australian Open. More recently, she had to pull out of a tournament in Austin after becoming ill with tonsillitis. Overall, she has only played four matches this year on the Tour and has won two of them.
“It affected me bad for the short term so I haven’t prepared much. I’ve probably never felt so sick in my life,” she said of having tonsillitis.
“When it rains, it pours. This and the infection – it’s obviously a challenge. My preparation hasn’t been ideal. I played on the weekend and then I rested it – it’s how you manage things when you aren’t prepared.”
Raducanu shot to the limelight in 2021 when she stunned the women’s Tour by coming through qualifying to win the US Open title. However, since then she has been hampered by various setbacks, coaching changes and is yet to contest another final on the Tour.
Raducanu’s first round meeting with Kovinic is the second match scheduled to take place at Stadium One on Thursday.
