Emma Raducanu's latest injury might not have been as painful and gruesome as initially thought despite her withdrawal from this year's Miami Open.
The British tennis star was handed a wild card to compete in the fourth WTA 1000 tournament of the season in Florida after an impressive week in Indian Wells, where she reached the third round.
Wins over Rebeka Masarova and Dayana Yastremska (retirement) set up an exciting clash against World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka. Raducanu gave it her all, but her lack of sufficient matches in the past year was evident as she lost in two tight sets.
This week, she was set to play in Miami and had been optimistically preparing for the tournament. She called her Indian Wells runs a "success" and did not let outside noise affect her momentum after tennis legend Martina Navratilova's criticism of Raducanu's US Open win in 2021.
The 21-year-old was included in the draw in Miami and even learned the identity of her first-round opponent and projected route which looked winnable in the first week until she decided to withdraw due to a back injury.
However, according to the Guardian, a member of Raducanu's inner circle revealed that the injury was not as bad as it was first feared. It will most likely rule her out of competing in Miami only.
It is a sensible decision. Raducanu is taking extra caution when it comes to her physical health. Any niggling injuries are not to be ignored. Last year, she underwent three surgeries (two on the wrists and one on the ankle), missing nearly seven months of the calendar.
Right now, her focus is on recovering from the lower back injury, which Raducanu did not want to worsen by playing in Miami. She was recently selected for Great Britain's Billie Jean King Cup team to face France next month. If she intends to feature, she has less than four weeks to get match fit.
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