(Tennis news) Emma Raducanu has withdrawn from the Kremlin Cup which is due to begin from October 18th to 24th in Moscow citing “tournament schedule change” as the reason behind her last minute decision. Raducanu has only played one game since her victory at Flushing Meadows, a second round clash against Aliaksandra Sasnovich which resulted in a defeat at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.
The 18 year old British tennis player announced on Thursday that she will be unavailable to participate in the tournament this year and is looking forward to returning to the WTA Tour in the “next couple of weeks”. In a statement, Raducanu said “Unfortunately I've had to make a tournament schedule change and won't be able to play Moscow this year, but I hope to compete there and in front of the Russian fans next year. I look forward to returning to the tour in the next couple of weeks”.
The World Number 22 is slowly adjusting to life as a Grand Slam champion and recently said that she needs to “cut herself some slack” after her 6-2 6-4 defeat to Sasnovich at the Indian Wells. "I'm kind of glad that what happened today happened so I can learn and take it as a lesson. So going forward, I'll just have more experience banked. I think it's going to take me time to adjust really to what's going on. I mean, I'm still so new to everything. I mean, I'm 18 years old. I need to cut myself some slack."
Raducanu recently split with Andrew Richardson, weeks after her incredible victory at the US Open. After losing to Aliaksandra Sasnovich, the 18 year old said “I’d love to have someone with great experience right now by my side so if any experienced coaches are out there looking, you know where to find me.” Former British tennis player Jeremy Bates helped the young star at the BNP Paribas Open but is unlikely to be Richardson’s full time replacement, particularly after Raducanu’s early exit. As things stand, Argentina’s Carlos Rodriguez, who previously coached Belgium’s Justine Henin seems most likely to be the new coach.
Raducanu was due to play in the Transylvania Open and at the Upper Austria Ladies in Linz from 6 November. It remains to be seen if the rest of her foreseeable schedule will change as well after her withdrawal from the Kremlin Cup.
Also read: Grigor Dimitrov takes out top seed Daniil Medvedev at Indian Wells
