Emma Raducanu criticised again for seemingly snubbing Cincinnati Open qualifying after wildcards confirmed
WTA
As the wildcards were set for the Cincinnati Open, a glaring omission was a certain Emma Raducanu who again raised eyebrows for deciding against playing qualifying. The tournament starts on August 12 and Raducanu now has minimal options in order to play before the US Open.
Raducanu could yet be given a wildcard to Tennis in the Land Cleveland or Abierto GNP Seguros (Monterrey Open) which take place in the week prior. But it is another saga in her return year which has seen her decide against routes into tournaments the hard way.
The former US Open champion declined the offer of a wildcard for the Paris Olympic Games instead deciding to prioritise her health and maintain fitness for the US Open swing. But she at the moment may only play at the DC Open in Washington.
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She did not receive a wildcard for the Canadian Open and decided not to enter qualifying. The same has happened ahead of the Cincinnati Open with Caroline Wozniacki, Bianca Andreescu, Peyton Stearns and Caroline Dolehide preferred.
But given that the US Open was the first precursor ironically through qualifying to her career starting, a lot of social media users couldn't get the continued logic of not playing through the rounds. "She'd better be following in the footsteps of billionaire Emma (Navarro) and scrolling through the ITF website calendar to vulture some 75K in Chicago! She's allergic to playing qualifying when it's literally what gave her a career in the first place," one wrote.
Another also echoed a similar point that the decision to skip the Olympic Games now looks a bit pointless when it comes to prioritizing the US tour if only to play one event. "So Emma Raducanu's skipping both hard court 1000 events before the US Open. This is really surprising to me... One of the reasons she gave for skipping the Olympics was to get a head start on the hard courts so missing both of these big events doesn't make any sense to me."
But similar to Wozniacki who has faced the same criticism and predicament, some see it as Raducanu not wanting to playing qualifying given her reputation and name in the sport. A route that others such as Naomi Osaka seem to not care about going down despite winning more Grand Slams.
But the only way it can be remedied is further success and more wins on tour as Wozniacki for instance has found in not needing as many wildcards now and even Raducanu to an extent.
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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