Emma Raducanu accepts qualifying wildcard in move that marks a shift in scheduling strategy

Ewan West
Pictured: Emma Raducanu reacts
Emma Raducanu fully focused during a match

Emma Raducanu has accepted a wildcard into the qualifying draw for the Abu Dhabi Open on the back of her opening round exit in Singapore.

The world No 56 will play in the first qualifying round at the WTA 500 tournament on Saturday. Main draw action will take place from February 3 to 8.

It will be Raducanu’s second appearance at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open after she reached the second round as a wildcard last year.

The move represents a change in Raducanu‘s approach to scheduling as it will be the first time she has played a qualifying event since her remarkable US Open triumph in 2021.

Raducanu, who did not drop a set in any of her three qualifying matches or seven main draw matches during her fairytale US Open run, is the only player in tennis history to win a Grand Slam title as a qualifier.

The 22-year-old Brit faced criticism in 2024 for choosing not to play qualifying for any tournaments where her ranking was not high enough to enter the main draw directly.

The most notable example of this was Raducanu missing the WTA 1000 tournaments in Toronto and Cincinnati, which meant she did not play a match for almost a month before the US Open.

Kim Clijsters and Andy Roddick were two of the highest profile former tennis stars to question Raducanu’s scheduling during that period of the season.

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Raducanu was beaten 7-5, 5-7, 5-7 by world No 101 Cristina Bucsa in the first round of the ongoing Singapore Open, a WTA 250 event, on Monday.

The former world No 10 reached the third round of the Australian Open in her first tournament of the 2025 campaign. She had been due to start her season at the WTA 250 in Auckland, but she was forced to withdraw due to a back injury.

Raducanu ended last year as the world No 56 after playing 13 WTA Tour events in 2024 and finishing with a 23-13 record, which includes her 5-0 record in Billie Jean King Cup matches.

She started 2024 as the world No 301 having missed over half of the 2023 season due to surgeries she underwent on both wrists and her ankle.

In December, Raducanu outlined her intention to play more regularly this year.

“I want to play more than I did this year,” she said.

“I think now, with my set-up, I’m in a place where I can continue work on the road. So I don’t necessarily need to come back to continue good physical work.

“I can do it pretty much every day, like microdoses. And I think that’s actually going to be a great addition for me next year, which I’m excited about.

“Also with my tennis, I’m in a pretty good spot. I feel like I just want to see how much I can do, and fulfil my potential. I’m curious about what my level can get to.

“I really want to play more. And I think a big part of that is just staying healthy.”

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