Emma Raducanu said on Tuesday that she had “no idea” whether she would be fit in time for Wimbledon this month after a “strange injury” forced her to retire from the Rothesay Open in Nottingham after just 36 minutes first round match against Viktorija Golubic.
Raducanu took a three-minute timeout due to injury after the third game, in which he held on to a 2-1 lead. The first signs were that his problem had been resolved, as he immediately broke Golubic’s service for the second time, but his opponent went back the next three games, while Raducanu received more attention from the physiotherapist with each change.
He barely made any progress towards Golubic’s return at the start of his fourth serve, lost it with a strong right-footed shot into the net and told the referee he could not continue moments later.
“First game, absolute monster,” Raducanu said later. “I think I pulled something out. I don’t know exactly what happened, I don’t know what I could have done about it. I have to do a scan, I’ll probably have it checked and we’ll see from here. It’s next to my body, maybe it sits around my ribs.
“Once in the first game, I said that doesn’t look good to me. Then I thought, first game, if you do something in the first game, people will say, why did you go out on the court?
“So I definitely tried to get over it, but in the second game I called the physiotherapist on the first shift to try and get some work done, but from there, even she said, this is going to be very difficult for you continue. ”
Raducanu does not believe his latest injury is in any way related to a back problem earlier this year, but he said that meant he “couldn’t do anything” on the track.
“You don’t want to stop after a game or two and I tried to fight, and I also found myself with a 3-1,” he said. “At the time, I knew it was only a matter of time before I was honest. I obviously couldn’t serve and because of the location. [of the injury] that is, he had to move it for everything, turn, move, serve, inspire, and exhale. “
It was a sad conclusion to Raducanu’s return to Nottingham, the tournament in which he began his career 12 months ago.
Emma Raducanu said she had difficulty serving after the “strange injury” she suffered in the first round in Nottingham. Photo: Anna Gowthorpe / Shutterstock
His first-round defeat to Harriet Dart here in 2021 offered no indication of what was to come, as Raducanu reached the fourth round at Wimbledon a few weeks later before his extraordinary 10-win championship career. at the U.S. Open in September. when she became the first to win a Grand Slam event in the open era.
Raducanu has suffered several injury issues since his New York victory, including blisters and a back problem, while he also contracted Covid-19 in December. He has a ticket to the Birmingham Rothesay Classic next week, with Wimbledon starting on June 27th.
“I did not think so [Birmingham], to be honest, “he said.” I literally got off the track after I got out of the way I did. I’m not thinking exactly about next week right away.
“I am trying to maintain the positive mentality that I have been having, and I had prepared very well for this tournament. I felt good and comfortable, and I think even when I was out there, there were some hints that I was pretty happy, playing more aggressively and stuff, so that’s a shame.
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“I’m obviously disappointed. It’s very unlucky, because I feel like I’ve been working really well and sometimes you just want to take a break or something and I haven’t really done that. It’s out of my control, but I feel right now, all I can do is do it and I’m doing a really good job. I just have to trust that. “
Meanwhile, there was better news for Andy Murray, who began his campaign at the Boss Open in Stuttgart with the victory over Australian Christopher O’Connell.
The two-time Wimbledon champion lost last week in the semifinals of the second-tier Challenger event at Surbiton and has headed to Germany to continue his turf season. Murray lost the first three games to O’Connell, but recovered strongly to secure a 6-4, 6-3 victory.