Iga Swiatek has weighed in on the concerning safety incident involving Emma Raducanu at the Dubai Championships and divulged that she avoided a “scary” fan experience of her own in the past.
The incident took place early in Raducanu‘s 6-7(6), 4-6 loss to Karolina Muchova in the second round of the WTA 1000 event on Tuesday.
After losing the second game of the match, a visibly distressed Raducanu spoke to the umpire before she hid behind the official’s chair while crying.
Muchova consoled Raducanu, while the umpire spoke to security officials and the tournament supervisor on her walkie-talkie and had a lengthy discussion with both players before the match resumed.
The WTA has since revealed that a man first approached Raducanu in public on Monday and that the same individual was removed from her match with Muchova.
A statement from the WTA Tour read: “On Monday, February 17, Emma Raducanu was approached in a public area by a man who exhibited fixated behaviour.
“This same individual was identified in the first few rows during Emma’s match on Tuesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and subsequently ejected. He will be banned from all WTA events pending a threat assessment.
Emma Raducanu News
Full WTA statement and video after shocking Emma Raducanu incident in Dubai
“Player safety is our top priority, and tournaments are advised on security best practices for international sporting events. The WTA is actively working with Emma and her team to ensure her well-being and provide any necessary support.
“We remain committed to collaborating with tournaments and their security teams worldwide to maintain a safe environment for all players.”
In her press conference after beating Dayana Yastremska 7-5, 6-0 to reach the Dubai quarter-finals, Swiatek discussed the Raducanu incident and shared a similar experience she had.
“We were able to avoid one, like, incident that might have been scary back in the day when I was hosting my own event in Poland,” the world No 2 explained.
“Yeah, there are fans that are kind of, I don’t know, everywhere. But I’m pretty sure that they don’t have any bad intentions.
“Obviously, you know, we are public persons, so we should always keep our eyes open and ready to react if we feel uncomfortable. I’m sure it must have been tough for Emma.
“I know the WTA banned this person from going on-site anywhere on any tournament. So I guess the reaction was pretty solid.
“I like that because it’s WTA’s kind of responsibility to keep us safe, for that environment to be safe for us. I guess with their help it’s fine. But, yeah, it’s hard probably to avoid these situations before.”
The five-time Grand Slam champion also revealed she is conscious of her safety with the way she uses social media.
“I try for my Instagram feed to be up to date and everything,” the 23-year-old Pole added.
“But yeah, sometimes we are posting one day after I left someplace or just after, I don’t know, the event and everything.
“On the other hand, it’s kind of natural anyway because then you have photos to post. I guess it’s all about the timing and also if I stay in a nice hotel and I know that I’m going to be there for a longer time, it’s also nice for this hotel to be ready to accommodate us in a way that it’s safe, getting some, I don’t know, different entrance, yeah.
“But it all depends on the situation, I guess. Usually people are helpful with that because they understand that I’m in a situation where I’m kind of exposed.”
The post Iga Swiatek reacts to Emma Raducanu’s shocking ordeal and recalls avoiding her own ‘scary’ experience appeared first on Tennis365.
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