Emma Raducanu won't be in the Great Britain team for this week's Billie Jean King Cup ties but the captain hopes she will return in the future.
Raducanu played for Great Britain in the past even scoring a win over the Czech Republic in the qualifiers last year. This year though, Raducanu opted to focus more on her own career travelling early to Stuttgart in order to prepare for the event that begins on Monday.
I think we all know when this tie was going to be played and where she is now. But it’s irrelevant. We hope she makes herself available for future ties. I know she wants to be part of this team. It was just, on this occasion, it wasn’t the right timing for her.
Keothavong is fully aware that the snub is nothing more than Raducanu prioritising her career over the Billie Jean King Cup which is fine but she still hopes that Raducanu will have time to represent her country and future ties, especially if the British team qualifies for the Finals.
Some suspected that her injuries might have played a part in the choice but being able to play a few days after the tie in Stuttgart means that Raducanu would have been able to play a few days earlier in Coventry as well.
Raducanu recently gave an interview where she admitted her excitement about being back in Stuttgart at the Porsche event believing it a great chance to get her clay season underway. She played at it last year and did fairly well.
Personally, I like to test myself and compete with the best players in the world, so it’s a challenge I enjoy. It plays a bit faster than an outdoor clay court, such as Rome, and I think it suits my game. The tournament is a super way to begin the clay season. So hopefully it sets me up well and helps the transition to clay.
0 Comments