Emma Raducanu broke down in tears during practice due to
Emma Raducanu will kick off her Wimbledon campaign against Ekaterina Alexandrova, having fought back tears while practicing with the Russian
Emma Raducanu was close to tears the last time she knocked up with Ekaterina Alexandrova, the woman she’s facing in the first round at Wimbledon. The English tennis star, 21, is desperate to reignite her career, nearly three years on from her shock US Open triumph.
Raducanu is currently unseeded, having struggled for both fitness and form for much of the past two years, and only managed to qualify for Wimbledon as a wild card.
The draw has pitted her against Russian 22nd seed Alexandrova, and the pair haven’t stood across the court from one another since an ill-fated practice session ahead of the 2022 US Open.
Raducanu was heading into Flushing Meadows as a defending champion but had struggled all year with fitness problems. After 40 minutes of knocking up, the Canada-born Brit was forced to pause due to discomfort in her hand.
She decided to carry on but stopped for a second time minutes later with a look of anguish splashed across her face. While talking things over with her coach, Raducanu could be seen fighting back tears as the pair discussed what to do next.
After the session, Raducanu explained to reporters that all was well but admitted she had “a couple of blisters” on her hand that were giving her a lot of grief.
That said, she was knocked out in the first round by unfancied Alizé Cornet in straight sets a few days later, becoming just the third woman in US Open history to lose her opening match in the year after winning the title.
Since then, she’s only featured in two majors, the Australian Open in 2023 and 2024, and on both occasions was beaten in the second round.
