Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from the Italian Open in Rome due to a post-viral illness.
The British No 1 had been practicing in Rome for the past few days and conducted her media obligations before deciding with her team to withdraw.
She has been absent from the tour since Indian Wells at the start of March, pulling out of tournaments in Miami, Linz and Madrid citing the ongoing effects of a virus she picked up at the beginning of February.
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Sky Sports’ Tim Henman and Martina Navratilova debate if Emma Raducanu needs to commit to a long-term coach and improve her off-court physicality to reach her full potential
Raducanu also opted to sit out Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifier against Australia, but had been hopeful of playing in Rome.
She had been drawn to face Solana Sierra or a qualifier in the second round on Thursday or Friday but she is yet to play a single match of the clay-court swing.
Speaking to Sky Sports Tennis just before her withdrawal, Raducanu was asked about her fitness and health. She said: “It’s been a long few weeks since she last competed. I’ve made good progress, good gains in the last few weeks. I’m feeling really positive about where I’m heading and how I’m playing, what I’m doing on the court each day. I feel motivated and feel good to go. That’s a real win for me!”
Coach Andrew Richardson guided Raducanu to the US Open title in 2021
Raducanu spent time training last week in Spain with Andrew Richardson at the Ferrer Tennis Academy near Alicante, where he is based.
Richardson was the coach who was by her side when she famously lifted the US Open title as a qualifier almost five years ago.
She has worked mainly with hitting partner Alexis Canter since the split from Francisco Roig, although she did briefly turn again to Mark Petchey at Indian Wells in March.
Raducanu said: “I got a couple of good weeks of clay preparation in coming here and it was nice to see Andrew again. We’ve kept on good terms but overall I had a couple of really good weeks in Europe. The European clay is a bit different to the way the clay is back home so I’m feeling good overall.”
The Brit has been working under the guidance of childhood coach Jane O’Donoghue and physiotherapist Emma Stewart in Rome as she prepared for her comeback.
“Right now, it’s about trying to get up to speed in terms of physically, playing points again. It’s very different practising and playing points again, and sets, and playing against the girls who are top level. Seeing where my game is at and trying to react sharply to the ball. So that’s what I’ve been doing here, trying to get my eye in,” said the former US Open champion.
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Highlights from the Indian Wells match between Emma Raducanu and Amanda Anisimova
The 23-year-old last played in the third round at Indian Wells on March 8, when she slipped to a 6-1 6-1 defeat against Amanda Anisimova.
Speaking afterwards, Raducanu admitted she felt a lack of power had contributed to her low-key display.
“I need to obviously be aggressive when playing those players, but I think there’s still a long way to go to be doing that and I need to use my strengths and probably mix it up a bit more,” she said.
Raducanu could still play warm-up event ahead of French Open
Raducanu is in a race to be fit for the French Open
Raducanu could still play on the red dirt in the lead-up to the French Open, which starts on Sunday, May 24 to Sunday, June 7.
The Internationaux de Strasbourg (17-23 May) or Rabat Grand Prix (18-23 May) are her last options ahead of Roland-Garros.
British No 3 Katie Boulter will be hoping to continue her promising start to the clay-court season having reached the quarter-finals in Rouen and picked up a victory at the Madrid Open.
She will open against German Eva Lys on Wednesday.
Cameron Norrie has had a solid start to 2026 so far – reaching the third round at the Australian Open, quarter-finals at Indian Wells and Barcelona, regaining the British No 1 title and returning to the top 20.
The two-time ATP title-winner on clay has a first-round bye, while Jacob Fearnley, Jan Choinski, Jack Pinnington Jones and Billy Harris are all attempting to reach the main draw through qualifying.
World No 1 Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic can only meet in the final.
The Serb is set to make his first appearance since March, when he lost to Jack Draper at Indian Wells.
Should Sinner triumph at the Foro Italico, he would join Djokovic as the only men to complete the Career Golden Masters.
The 38-year-old Djokovic has won all nine ATP Masters 1000 events twice.
When is the Italian Open 2026?
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Highlights of the Madrid Open final between Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev
The women’s draw gets under way on Tuesday, May 5, with the men’s set to start from Wednesday, May 6 – live on Sky Sports Tennis.
The event will run until finals weekend on May 16 and 17.
Day sessions will begin at 10am, with evening sessions starting at 6pm.
Watch the ATP and WTA Tours, live on Sky Sports or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.