Emma Raducanu will not make her return to the WTA Tour at the Madrid Open.
Raducanu reached the final of the Transylvania Open in February, which was her first final of any kind since winning the US Open, but she has only played four matches since then.
The Briton has been struggling with a viral illness she obtained at the Transylvania Open, and Raducanu has not played a match since Indian Wells.
Raducanu has continued to postpone her return to the match court, and she has now withdrawn from the Madrid Open as well.
Emma Raducanu replaced as she withdraws from the Madrid Open
Raducanu has withdrawn from three consecutive tournaments, after also pulling out of the Miami Open, Linz Open and now the Madrid Open.
It has been reported that during her time away from the WTA Tour, Raducanu has been prioritising her fitness ahead of returning to the match court.
The 23-year-old is one of a number of withdrawals from the ATP/WTA 1000 tournament, with Carlos Alcaraz withdrawing from the Madrid Open due to a wrist injury.
There have also been several players pull out of the women’s singles draw in the Spanish capital, including Barbora Krejcikova, Emma Navarro, and Raducanu’s compatriot Sonay Kartal.
Raducanu has now been replaced by former Wimbledon quarterfinalist Ajla Tomljanovic, who will take her place in the Madrid Open draw.
Will Emma Raducanu ever win another Grand Slam title?
How many ranking points will Emma Raducanu lose for missing the Madrid Open?
Raducanu reached the second round at the Madrid Open last year, and therefore will only be dropping 35 ranking points.
The former US Open champion will be more in danger of a significant ranking drop if she misses the Italian Open, where Raducanu reached the fourth round last year.
Emma Raducanu should make Andy Murray her next coach
Do you think this is a possibility?
If Raducanu is unable to play the Italian Open as well, then she is likely to drop outside of the 32 seeded places.
Not only is this damaging to Raducanu’s hopes at the French Open, but perhaps more significantly for Wimbledon, which is only four weeks after the clay court major.
Raducanu not being seeded at Grand Slams means that she could play anyone from Aryna Sabalenka in the first round.
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