Raducanu exhausted after Madrid Open first-round exit
- Emma Raducanu’s early retirement from the Madrid Open has left her exhausted, prompting concerns about both her physical and mental stress while competing.
- Emma Raducanu, who lost in the first round of the Madrid Open, expressed that she was “mentally and emotionally exhausted.”
The 21-year-old lost to Maria Lourdes Carle, an Argentine qualifier, 6-2.
Raducanu, continuing her return from an injury-plagued 2023 season, helped Britain defeat France in the Billie Jean King Cup and advanced to her first WTA quarterfinal in 19 months at the Stuttgart Open last week.
Raducanu remarked, “I would say the last few weeks have been a lot.”
“I believe it was evident from my performance tonight that I was emotionally and mentally worn out.
“Today, despite my best efforts, I was just unable to persevere. The sport is just, I suppose, rather violent.
After having wrist and ankle surgery last year, Raducanu fell to 303rd in the world. Karolina Pliskova was scheduled to play Raducanu in her opening round, but the former world number one withdrew from the competition due to a wrist injury.
Raducanu, who is ranked 221st right now, lost both sets against her opponent, who is ranked 82nd, and was unable to rally.
In Madrid, Harriet Dart again lost in straight sets.
The 27-year-old, who advanced to the main event by winning two qualifying matches, trailed Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 4-0 in the second set before losing 6-4, 6-4.
Jack Draper of Britain advanced to the men’s draw after a tough three-set victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis, an Australian qualifier.
The 22-year-old Draper saved a final-set tiebreak by breaking service in the twelfth game to seal a 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 triumph after Kokkinakis forced a close match into a tiebreaker.
Hubert Hurkacz, the eighth seed from Poland, will face the world number 43 next.
In other news, four-time major champion Naomi Osaka advanced at the Madrid Open after defeating Greet Minnen of Belgium 6-4, 6-1.
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