Emma Raducanu was forced to withdraw from her first round match at the Qatar opening after having her blood pressure checked on court by a doctor.
The Brit’s quest for a first title since 2021 ended with a whimper at the weekend as she lost in straight sets to Sorana Cirstea in the Transylvania Open final, and things went downhill again just 48 hours later.
The 23-year-old was thrashed 6-0, 6-2 on the hard court in Cluj-Napoca in a final marred by health and fitness issues, leaving her needing a medical timeout.
And her health was a cause for concern again on Monday, as issues flared up during her first round game against Camila Osorio in Doha.
After Raducanu won her first ever set in the tournament at her third attempt, she seemed to tire after being broken mid-way through the second set, before losing it 6-4 as her opponent levelled up the match.
She went onto drop serve in the third set before being visited by the doctor. She did return to the court for one more game, but was barely moving, and eventually made her way to the net to shake hands with her opponent.
Emma Raducanu was forced to withdraw from the Qatar Open after receiving medical attention on court
Just like during her Transylvania Open defeat (pictured), Raducanu had to have her blood pressure taken on court again
The score was 2-6, 6-4, 0-2 at the time of her retirement.
The star from Bromley was trying to kick on after reaching her first final since her 2021 US Open triumph over the weekend, particularly after her sticky start to the season.
She had crashed out of the Australian Open in the first round in January in straight sets to the world No55 Anastasia Potapova, and thus swung the axe on her coach Franciso Roig after a mere six months, leaving her searching for a 10th trainer of her career as she touched down in Romania, the homeland of her father Ion.
And there are plenty of positives to take from the week in the jewel of northeastern Romania. Raducanu showed a never-say-die spirit to recover from 5-0 down against Kaja Juvan in the second round, before overturning a set deficit in the semis against Oleksandra Oliynykova, a ‘brutal’ battle during which she hurt her shoulder.
There was debate over whether the 23-year-old would compete as she continues to struggle with regular tennis, but she tried until she could not carry on.
The competition was part of a double header in the Middle East this week, with a second WTA 1000 event starting in the next week in Dubai. It remains unclear if Raducanu will compete.
She said after her defeat on Saturday: ‘I want to say thank you to all the ball kids, all the umpires, all the sponsors who made this tournament possible. There’s so much work that goes on behind the scenes. I want to thank the public. You really made me feel at home this week.
‘Sorry today I couldn’t bring my best. But congratulations as well to Sorana – you’ve had an incredible week. I think you’re playing great tennis. I don’t know if this is your last tournament in Cluj here, but I know if it was me I’d be out on a high. Congrats for everything.
The Brit is continuing to struggle with regular tennis but is doing her best to kick on with her latest coach
‘Honestly it’s been a while since I’ve given one of these speeches. I wanna thank Alexis and the people back home who’ve supported me throughout the last few years.
‘It’s been like four or five years since my last final. It means a lot. I’m really happy it’s here in Cluj.’