Emma Raducanu pulls out of Madrid Open for devastating reason
Emma Raducanu has pulled out of her scheduled first round match at the Madrid Open
PA
Emma Raducanu has pulled out of her scheduled first round match at the Madrid Open just hours before she was set to play Viktoriya Tomova.
On Wednesday morning Raducanu cited an issue with her right hand as the reason for her withdrawal.
The British No 1 may now fall out of the top 100 as she will lose the points achieved from reaching the third round at the Caja Magica twelve months ago.
The sudden withdrawal comes after an abrupt preview interview on the tournament’s media day where she said just 58 words in response to 16 questions.
The sudden withdrawal comes after an abrupt preview interview on the tournament’s media day
PA
The 20-year-old's latest physical problem will mean she will forfeit 110 of her 740 rankings points, which is likely to take her out of the top 100 in the women's world rankings.
She is due to play at the Italian Open in Rome in two weeks time ahead of Roland Garros but following her latest injury, questions have been raised over whether she will attend.
There was already concerns over the British star heading into the tournament following her interactions with the media on Tuesday.
The awkward encounter, which lasted less than three minutes, appeared to show the tennis player feeling the strain of one of her worst runs since turning professional.
When Raducanu was asked about her wrist injuries that became apparent in Indian Wells and Miami during the interview, she said: "We're managing it."
The rankings drop also comes at a difficult time for Raducanu, with the entry deadline for Wimbledon approaching on May 22.
It means there is just one more big tournament, the Italian Open on May 8, where she can attempt to gain some points in an attempt to push her ranking high enough to make the main draw.
However, if she doesn't make it into the Wimbledon main draw through her own ranking, it is likely that she will entee the competition as a wildcard.
The 20-year-old's latest physical problem will mean she will forfeit 110 of her 740 rankings points
PA
The 2021 US Open champion had been hindered by the wrist problem in recent months.
Raducanu's most recent appearance was a 6-2 6-1 defeat by Jelena Ostapenko in the first round of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart earlier this month, after which she dropped to 85 in the world rankings.
The defeat in Stuttgart was her second in a row in the opening round, after previously losing to Bianca Andreescu in the Miami Open last month.