Emma Raducanu will return to tennis on the Auckland Open in January after eight months out of the game.
Raducanu, who pulled out of an exhibition occasion in China final month as a precaution, has not performed since April and is at the moment ranked 296 on the planet.
The 21-year-old will make her comeback on the Auckland Open on the week starting January 1 – dwell on Sky Sports activities – with Coco Gauff additionally in motion in the identical match.
The Occasions reported on Tuesday that Raducanu signed as much as the Australian Open entry listing utilizing her protected rating of 103.
Nevertheless, because it stands that won’t get her into the primary draw, that means she is going to both have to qualify, be awarded a wild card or hope different gamers drop out.
The protected rating, also referred to as particular rating, is a system the place gamers on the tour who’ve been out of motion long-term can re-enter occasions on the rating they discovered themselves after they final acquired cash at an occasion.
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Raducanu has been affected by accidents since her 2021 US Open triumph
The Australian Open qualifying begins on January 8, with the Grand Slam at Melbourne Park getting below manner on January 14.
Whereas an Australian Open wild card shouldn’t be out of the query for Raducanu, organisers are inclined to prioritise native expertise that means Raducanu would want three wins in qualifying to achieve the primary draw.
Present listing of alternates for Australian Open principal draw
1) Aleksandra Krunic, Serbia – protected rating, No 99
2) Kamilla Rakhimova, Russia – precise rating, No 100
3) Yafan Wang, China – precise rating, No 101
4) Julia Grabher, Austria – precise rating, No 102
5) Tamara Zidansek, Slovenia – precise rating, No 103
6) Emma Raducanu, GB – protected rating, No 103
That might be acquainted territory for the previous British No 1, nevertheless, as she turned the one participant in historical past to win a grand slam title as a qualifier when she gained the US Open at Flushing Meadows two years in the past.
The 21-year-old has been stepping up her coaching not too long ago on the Nationwide Tennis Centre in London after surgical procedure on every wrist and one other operation on her ankle and this week was coaching in Hong Kong, whereas visiting the town for a sponsor occasion.
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Raducanu has undergone three surgical procedures (credit score: @emmaraducanu Instagram)
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