Emma Raducanu alluded to problems with her “health” following her heavy defeat to Sorana Cirstea in the final of the Transylvania Open on Saturday.
An impressive run for Raducanu saw her defeat Greet Minnen, Kaja Juvan, Maja Chwalinska, and Oleksandra Oliynykova to reach the final of the WTA 250 event in Cluj — her first final since her historic 2021 US Open triumph.
However, following a three-set battle versus Oliynykova in the semi-final, the top seed appeared to struggle physically and was far from her best in the championship match versus Cirstea, with the Romanian easing her way to a 6-0, 6-2 victory on home soil.
Raducanu is projected to rise five places to world No 25 in Monday’s WTA Rankings update, and is currently making a quick return to action at the Qatar Open in Doha this week.
However, the 23-year-old revealed in her post-match press conference on Saturday that she had been dealing with “some health” concerns in Cluj, potentially impacting her display in the final.
She said: “It was obviously really tough.
“I think Sorana played a great match for sure, and I’ve kind of… yeah, just been kind of dealing with some health… just not feeling great this week and then [Friday] was obviously a battle.
“I felt quite tired today and just need to try and rest as best as possible.
“But, I mean, I couldn’t do anything either against Sorana today. You know, she was playing incredible, and she has been all week, and I can’t sing her praises enough about how good she’s been, how nice of a person she is, and it’s just great to have someone like her around on the tour.”
All eyes will now be on whether Raducanu is fit and ready for the Qatar Open, with the opening WTA 1000 event of the year already underway in Doha.
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A tight turnaround means that the Brit will likely have only two days between her final in Cluj and the opening match in Doha, with the star and her team also having to travel between the two tournaments.
Raducanu is unseeded at the WTA 1000 event, though has been handed a favourable draw — with the Brit set to face qualifier Camila Osorio in the opening round.
Osorio is by no means the easiest opponent Raducanu could face, but it is a much kinder draw than facing a seed, and the Brit has already beaten the Colombian at the Hobart International this year.
Should Raducanu prevail, she could then face 11th seed Clara Tauson in round two, and potentially eighth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in round three.
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