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Emma Raducanu is heading to Melbourne however faces a nervous wait to see if she can be wholesome sufficient to compete on the Australian Open after struggling a sprained ankle in her first event of the 12 months.
On Thursday, Raducanu rolled her ankle at the start of the third set in her ASB Traditional second-round match towards Viktoria Kuzmova in Auckland. After receiving medical remedy, the 20-year-old performed one level earlier than retiring in tears. Afterwards, Raducanu criticised the “slick” indoor courts that they had been pressured to compete on on account of rain.
She is going to now go straight to Melbourne forward of the Australian Open, the primary grand slam event of the 12 months, however continues to be awaiting conclusive check outcomes on the severity of her ankle sprain.
Raducanu and her staff are hoping that she can be identified with a grade 1 sprain, which might a minimum of give her an opportunity of being able to compete on the Australian Open, which begins on 16 January. If her ankle damage is extra extreme, nonetheless, her possibilities of competing in Melbourne can be distant.
A 12 months in the past, Raducanu’s low season was disrupted after testing constructive for Covid-19 after which she suffered from blisters in her Australian Open second spherical loss to Danka Kovinic.
These opening weeks set the tone for a season stuffed with damage and well being points, ending along with her withdrawal from the Billie Jean King Cup finals in Glasgow, and additional complicating the duty of following up her 2021 US Open victory.
Raducanu has loved what she described as a constructive low season in 2022 along with her new trial coach Sebastian Sachs and had hoped that her physique can be extra adjusted to the trials of tennis in her second full season. This time, quite than any bodily weak point, her progress has been halted by the bitter misfortune of a sprained ankle.