Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper have both caused concern in recent weeks, having withdrawn from their opening tournaments of the 2025 season.
Raducanu was set to compete at the WTA 250 tournament in Auckland for a third consecutive year.
Although the Grand Slam champion appeared in the draw as the sixth seed, Raducanu ended up pulling out due to a ‘back niggle’.
While the top ranked British ATP player, Draper, was gearing up for his debut at the United Cup.
However, Draper was forced to withdraw from the mixed team event after citing a hip injury.
It now appears that there is a cause for optimism, with both Draper and Raducanu practicing at the Australian Open this week.
Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper both lead Australian Open practice matches
Raducanu was practicing with former Wimbledon champion and current world number six Elena Rybakina on the Australian Open’s centre court, the Rod Laver Arena.
Their only official meeting on the WTA Tour came at the Adelaide International back in 2022, with Raducanu winning only one game in a very one-sided affair.
Despite this, it has been reported that Raducanu won the practice set that she played against Rybakina on this occasion.
Later on Draper was practicing with world number 13 Holger Rune on the same court, with the Briton leading 6-5 before the practice session was closed off to the public.
Who will Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper play at the Australian Open?
Due to their respective rankings, Raducanu and Draper could have very different opening draws at the Australian Open.
Raducanu is currently ranked at 60th in the world, meaning that she will be unseeded for the first Grand Slam tournament of 2025.
As a result, the 22-year-old could face anyone including two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka from the first round of the Australian Open.
While Draper is currently at a career-high ranking of world number 15, after reaching the US Open semi-finals last year.
This means that he will be seeded at the Melbourne major for the first time in his career and cannot play a fellow seed until at least the third round.
The Australian Open draw takes place on Thursday January 9 at 2:30pm in Melbourne.
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