- Emma Raducanu was forced to use a scooter as she recovered from ankle injury
- The 2021 US Open champion has fallen to 298 in the world after her absence
- She will make her return to the circuit at the Auckland Classic on Monday
Emma Raducanu believes that her injury-enforced break from tennis has not halted her progress to be a better tennis player.
The 2021 US Open champion missed most of the 2023 season, after operations on both her wrists and one of her ankles, and it has meant that she has now falling down the rankings to be placed 298th in the world.
But the 21-year-old returns to the circuit with an appearance at the Auckland Classic on New Year’s Day, and went into detail about her injury issues in an interview before her first match of the season.
Raducanu told Sky Sports: ‘I would play and then I had the patch where I couldn’t play again for two months because of one of my wrists.
‘That was really difficult because I felt like I was just getting going and then I stepped back again.
Emma Raducanu believes she is a better tennis player than she was before her injury absence
The British star used a scooter after an operation on her ankle, and procedures on her wrists
‘It was hard, especially in the first few months. When you’re so used to being active and moving around all the time, then to all of a sudden to have everything just cut off from you.
‘I had like two wrists and one foot [injured] so I couldn’t even use crutches. I basically had like a a scooter kind of thing and you would push yourself around with one leg.
‘It was really difficult. I couldn’t really go anywhere. I couldn’t go to the supermarket; imagine being that immobile.
‘I think it definitely reignited the fire to get back out there competing and made me appreciate just being healthy.’
A protected ranking means that she is in the main draw for the Auckland Classic, and Raducanu believes that she is better coming out of her absence than she was before the multiple injury setbacks.
Raducanu revealed: ‘Physically, in in practice over the last few weeks, I’m hitting the ball really well.
‘I think I’m a better tennis player than I was before the break.’
She noted that LTA officials were seeing her training and playing ‘really really well’, pushing weights she couldn’t before.
‘In my body, I actually have confidence in it, which is really nice and tennis-wise I feel good too’, she said.
‘It’s just about now putting it into a match, which is obviously completely different to practice. I know that will come in time though – as long as the level is there and improving.’
The 2021 US Open champion has now falling down the rankings to 298th in the world
A protected ranking means that she will make her return at the Auckland Classic on January 1
The British tennis player will play a qualifier in the first round of the New Zealand event on Monday, and if she wins that, she will face either Caroline Wozniacki or Elina Svitolina in round two.
Raducanu is eager to get going in Auckland, saying she fears no opponent despite the potential of a heavyweight opponent in her second match back from injury.
She said: ‘The field here in Auckland is extremely strong. I’m excited to play anyone. It doesn’t bother me.
‘I think, match-wise, it might take a while to adjust to the feeling of pre-match nerves or just match fitness. But, level-wise, I feel really good.’
The former top ten player will have to qualify for the Australian Open, after missing out on a wildcard for the first Grand Slam of 2024.
She tried to distance herself from the 2023 tour while she recovered, only attending Wimbledon for work commitments, and says she feels ‘refreshed’ as a result of her time away from tennis.