Emma Raducanu didn't play at the 2024 Cincinnati Open, and there was a prevailing narrative in tennis circles that it was solely because she would have to play the qualifiers.
The claim is not baseless because an argument could be made that players don't like playing qualifiers. Earlier this year, Caroline Wozniacki refused to play qualifiers at the French Open after she wasn't given a wild card. Her father publicly blasted the event, calling it disrespectful.
While Raducanu's legacy in tennis isn't as big as that of Wozniacki, it isn't that unthinkable that she doesn't want to play the qualifiers. Even though her historic US Open run started in the qualifiers, the Brit hasn't played a single qualifying event since then.
She was questioned about it before the 2024 US Open, especially in light of a report that indicated Raducanu would have been open to playing the Cincinnati Open if she had gotten a wild card entry.
Her explanation for not playing at the WTA 1000 event in Cincinnati came down to her thinking that it was better to go back home instead of waiting ten days for Cincinnati to roll around because she wasn't playing in Toronto.
Raducanu told the media assembled at her US Open press conference that she was not opposed to playing in the qualifying, it was just a decision that she made, given all the circumstances.
"I think playing qualies is not something I'm against because if you get through those two rounds, you feel like you're adjusted to the courts. If you're playing a seed, you have a better feel for the ball."
"It's not that I'm against it. I just would have to wait around for one tournament in qualies and then another week off, so we just thought it was a better decision to go home and work on things there."
Raducanu once again confirmed that it was an internal decision that mostly involved circumstances, but the report about the decision made because of the wild card snub also came from sources within her camp.
Ultimately, we don't know the true reason why Raducanu didn't play the qualifiers in Cincinnati. She might have felt it was beneath her in some capacity or thought it would be detrimental overall.
The end result is that she hasn't played the qualifiers and likely won't in the future. The Brit's ranking has slowly improved over the past months, and she's slowly returning to the Top 50.
Once she reaches that mark, she won't have to worry about the qualifiers anymore, but not wanting to play them makes sense. It can be quite tricky, and the reward isn't always there.
Sometimes, a player can fail in the first match. At this moment, she felt that it wasn't necessary. What matters for her now is that she's in the US Open draw, and she'll try to do her best there.
If she does, her ranking will improve further, and this discussion won't matter anymore. She will face Sofia Kenin in the first round.