“I’m proud of how I fought and competed”: Emma Raducanu stays positive despite opening loss in Strasbourg comeback

Former US Open champion Emma Raducanu made her return to the courts this Tuesday at the Internationaux de Strasbourg, where she ended up falling in the first round against the French player Diane Parry. The British player was competing in her first clay-court tournament after more than two months of absence.

The former top-10 player has been dealing with health issues in recent months, which kept her out since Indian Wells, where she lost in the third round against Amanda Anisimova (1-6, 1-6). After that, she withdrew from Miami, Linz, Madrid and Rome due to illness, which also caused her ranking to drop to world No. 37.

This was the first tournament Raducanu played after reuniting with her coach Andrew Richardson – who guided her to the US Open title as a qualifier five years ago. This time, the Brit exits on her debut, acknowledging that the long time away from competition ultimately took its toll against an opponent arriving in strong form.

“Diane came in with a lot of confidence from her win last week and played some really good tennis,” Raducanu said after her loss, 4-6, 6-7. “I think I played well in moments but, yeah, it’s been a long break since I’ve played a competitive match.”

For Raducanu, this was her first clay-court tournament of the season, and the only one she will use as preparation for Roland Garros. In a two-and-a-half-hour battle, world No. 94 Parry showed consistency on serve – with 82% first serves in and winning 66% of those points. Two breaks against only one from Raducanu ultimately gave the match to the young French player.

Raducanu committed up to three double faults and was only able to convert one break from five opportunities. The British player acknowledged that she did not arrive in Strasbourg with high expectations and that she still needs time on court to fully regain match rhythm.

“It’s gonna take a little bit of time before I find my groove on the match court,” the 23-year-old Brit said. “I’m proud of how I fought and competed throughout the whole match. I feel like I’m just trying to take care of each day as best as I possibly can.”

Raducanu will now turn her preparation towards the French Open, where she lost the chance to be seeded due to her absence in recent months. This means she will not avoid higher-ranked players in the early rounds and will be a tricky opponent in the draw in a few days’ time.

Back in 2025, Raducanu produced some interesting results on clay courts, including a run to the fourth round at the Rome Open (defeat to Coco Gauff), although later at the French Open she was unable to go beyond the second round after running into four-time Roland Garros champion Iga Swiatek.