Emma Raducanu expects to be fit in time for Wimbledon after a scan revealed that the side strain she suffered at the Nottingham Open is unlikely to require a prolonged period of recovery.
Raducanu, who will miss next week’s Birmingham Classic, was forced to retire just seven games into her opening-round match in Nottingham against Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic. The US Open champion said initially that she had “no idea” whether she would be able to compete at the All England Club in three weeks’ time. After receiving a positive prognosis, however, she is expected to request a wild card for Eastbourne, which starts on 18 June.
“It was disappointing to go out this week with a side injury and unfortunately I will no longer be able to play in Birmingham,” said Raducanu, the world No 11, after undergoing a scan on Tuesday night.
“I’m looking forward to being back on the match court soon, though, to enjoy the rest of the grass season.”
Raducanu, 19, later posted a picture of herself in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber alongside her physio Tom Cornish. The treatment, which increases oxygen levels in the blood, is frequently used by athletes to accelerate tissue healing following injury.
Raducanu reached the fourth round at Wimbledon last summer, but was forced to retire with breathing difficulties midway through the second set of her match against Ajla Tomljanovic. With no ranking points on offer in SW19 this year, the Briton will need a deep run at Eastbourne to avoid a slight drop in the rankings.
Raducanu has suffered a string of injuries in her first full season on the tour. Her retirement against Golubic, which came shortly after she strained an abdominal muscle in the opening game, marked the third time this year that she has been forced to pull out mid-match. Raducanu retired with a hip injury in the final set of an epic tussle with Daria Saville at the Guadalajara Open in February, while a back injury brought her Italian Open campaign to a premature end against Bianca Andreescu last month.
“I’m obviously disappointed,” said Raducanu following her exit in Nottingham. “It’s really bad luck, because I feel like I’ve been putting really good work in and sometimes you just want to catch a break or something and I haven’t really. That’s out of my control, but I feel like right now, all I can do is what I’m doing and I’m putting in a lot of good work. I just need to trust that.”