Emma Raducanu’s withdrawal from the French Open qualifiers has left one tennis pundit completely baffled.
The former British Number One has endured a challenging season as she makes her comeback from ankle and wrist surgeries in 2023.
Following a promising start to the clay court swing, Raducanu, 21, exited the Madrid Open at the first hurdle and has now decided to sit out Roland Garros.
While several tennis commentators and analysts have agreed with the player’s decision to not travel to Paris, one member of the Tennis Podcast has a different point of view.
Emma Raducanu’s Roland Garros decision is a divisive one
Some commentators understand Raducanu’s decision to not try and qualify for Roland Garros, but The Tennis Podcast’s host Catherine Whitaker shares a different opinion.
It has been pointed out that the former US Open champion could do with the rest ahead of competing on the grass on home soil this summer.
But the 38-year-old thinks the player should have used the qualifiers as an opportunity to gain some wins, and help to rebuild her body and confidence in her game.
“I don’t understand this, I’m a bit bemused by this honestly,” she said during the podcast’s latest episode. “From where we were a few weeks ago after the Bing King Cup run and the continuation of that in Stuttgart, I just feel a bit confused by this.
“I know that she’s still building up the strength in her body. I know it’s still relatively early days for her in terms of becoming a hardened week in week out tour pro. But I also think building up that physical and mental resilience and I get that it’s hard, is to get the reps in.
“There’s a Grand Slam going on and she could be playing in that atmosphere at Roland Garros and get the chance to get some winning done again and get that back in the muscle memory, I just just don’t get this.”
Why did Emma Raducanu withdraw from the Roland Garros qualifiers?
The former World Number 10 announced she will not be taking part in the French Open qualifiers in order to spend more time preparing for the grass court season.
“It’s important for me to keep laying on the foundations and I will use the time to do a healthy block before the grass and subsequent hard court seasons to give myself a chance to keep fit for the rest of the year,” her statement read.
Sky Sports have reported that Raducanu will begin the grass court season at Nottingham’s Rothesay Open which commences on June 10.
This will be the Brit’s third appearance at the tournament with the first coming in 2021, the year of her breakthrough, and again the following year, when she retired due to injury.
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