Emma Raducanu may not return at 2024 Australian Open as commentators hint at comeback delay

Emma Raducanu may not launch her comeback at the 2024 Australian Open as former players Laura Robson and Samantha Smith appeared to suggest that she would delay her return to the sport.

Former British No. 1 Raducanu made history at the 2021 US Open when she became the first-ever unseeded qualifier to win a Grand Slam, defeating Leylah Fernandez in the final 6-4, 6-3. However, she then had to deal with a string of coaching changes and injuries that caused a drop in her level before announcing in May that she would be undergoing surgery on her wrists and right ankle.

The 20-year-old subsequently had to miss the rest of the 2023 season but has been providing fans with regular updates as she prepares to return to the sport. In a recent interview with another former British No. 1 Laura Robson, Raducanu seemed positive, saying that although "the process is so slow and repetitive", she feels as though she is "in a better place to compete now than I ever have been before."

Robson recently provided commentary for the 2023 WTA Finals in Cancun with another former British player, Sam Smith. During one piece of commentary, their conversation turned to Raducanu's comeback, when Smith suggested that the young star may not return to the sport at the Australian Open despite this being the original expectation among many fans.

Robson then seemed to sidestep the idea instead of providing a definitive answer either way. Nevertheless, this is a possibility that has been implied by others in the sport recently. Former Wimbledon champion Marion Bartoli warned that Raducanu needed to be cautious upon her comeback and set realistic aims for herself in order to get back to her best.

"It’s one thing to do it one time, which is already very difficult, but it is another thing to do it year after year after year," he said, "I was in the top ten for six consecutive years in a row, so people started to know my name. You go from one tournament to another and this is how people follow you. If one year you are top ten and the second year you are 100 and the third year you are out of the top 100, then people forget about you.

"It’s all about consistency and once you stop improving, that’s when you can go backwards. It’s all about improving some part of your game, your fitness and you need to look to work more. That can be a challenge when you have already achieved so much so young as it is difficult to get yourself going on the practice court. I’m not blaming anyone, but if you want to build your profile and to be known by the public, you have to repeat your performance.

"For Emma, it’s all about getting herself healthy again so she can do a full year. Since the US Open, she has had stop and go, stop and go. She plays one tournament and then she is on the sidelines for two months. If she gets her body right and has one full year, I feel she can go back to where she was when she was at the top of her game," he continued.