Emma Raducanu’s preparations for Wimbledon were thrown into chaos here on Tuesday as she was forced to retire injured only 35 minutes into her first-round match against Viktorija Golubic in the Rothesay Open.
The British No 1 lost her opening service game to 30 but immediately broke back and then comfortably held serve for a 2-1 lead. Raducanu then took a three-minute timeout at the change of ends which initially appeared to have resolved a problem with her left side, as she immediately broke the Golubic serve for a second time, mixing power and guile to set up thumping winners on both forehand and backhand.
The revival was over almost as soon as it had begun, however, as Golubic reeled off the next three games while Raducanu received further attention from the physio at every change.
She scarcely moved towards the Golubic return at the start of her fourth service game, surrendered it with a weak forehand into the net and informed the umpire that she would not be able to continue a few moments later, trailing 4-3 in the opening set.
It was a miserable way to end Raducanu’s return to Nottingham, and the tournament in which she launched her professional career 12 months ago.
Her first-round defeat by Harriet Dart here in 2021 offered no hint of what was to follow, as Raducanu reached the fourth round at Wimbledon a few weeks later before her extraordinary 10-match winning run to the championship at the US Open in September, when she became the first qualifier to win a grand slam event in the open era.
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Raducanu has suffered several injury issues since her victory in New York, including blisters and a back problem, while she also contracted Covid-19 in December. She now appears to face a race against time to be fully fit and prepared for Wimbledon, which begins on 27 June.
