Emma Raducanu has tested positive for COVID-19 and been forced to withdraw from the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi, where she was due to play an exhibition match against Belinda Bencic on Thursday.
I was very much looking forward to playing in front of the fans here in Abu Dhabi, but unfortunately after testing positive for Covid-19, I will have to postpone until the next opportunity. I’m isolating as per rules and hopefully will be able to get back on court soon. Emma Raducanu
As a result, the 19-year old from Bromley has had to put her plans ahead of the Australian Open on hold as she is experiencing mild symptoms while quarantining for 10 days in the UAE.
A replacement for Raducanu is being sought to fill in and play Bencic in Abu Dhabi.
Raducanu, a huge fan of Formula 1, was due to attend the final Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, but was not present to see Red Bull driver Max Verstappen pip Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton in the final lap to the title.
“I was very much looking forward to playing in front of the fans here in Abu Dhabi, but unfortunately after testing positive for Covid-19, I will have to postpone until the next opportunity,” she said. “I’m isolating as per rules and hopefully will be able to get back on court soon.”
Tournament organisers added her statement: “Emma is now isolating and following all necessary protocols.
“We wish her a quick recovery and hope to see her back on the court soon.”
The Abu Dhabi exhibition event was to be the second of two post-season events attended by the Brit, the first being at the Champions Tennis event at Royal Albert Hall in London in late November where Raducanu played Romanian world number 85 Elena-Gabriela Ruse in a best of three sets exhibition match.
Fans will now have to wait until early January for a chance to watch the teenager in action again after the US Open champion became the first qualifier to win a major when she triumphed at Flushing Meadows in September.
The Australian open starts on 17 January and requires players to be vaccinated against the virus while returning a negative test 72 hours before they arrive in the country.
Providing she does not experience any lingering illness, however, Raducanu, the World No 19, should still be able to travel to Australia ahead of the first Grand Slam of the New Year.
Latest figures show that around 80 per cent of the top 100 women’s tennis players have been vaccinated ahead of the Australian Open.
With some of the strictest Covid-19 protocols in the world, players at the 2021 AO were required to complete a 14-day quarantine period upon arriving in the country.
The England’s men’s cricket team, who are currently in Australia for the Ashes, spent two weeks in quarantine at a Gold Coast resort before they could begin fully their preparations.
The strict rules for the players flying out to Australia insist on vaccination and a negative test 72 hours before their arrival, or they will have to quarantine for 14 days in a hotel when they arrive.
Although Raducanu will still be able to travel as her isolation period ends well before the start of the Grand Slam, this positive test is detrimental as she is missing out on key preparation time for the competition.
Emma Raducanu was last seen in action at the Royal Albert Hall in November
Meanwhile, on Monday, Raducanu, who is currently ranked 19 in the world, was named among the six shortlisted candidates morning for the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year.
The BBC has drastically cut the number of those invited to its Sports Personality of the Year Show in the wake of the Government’s new coronavirus restrictions, while also confirming that top athletes had turned down invitations because they would be forced to cancel their Christmas plans if they caught Covid-19 at the 19 December.
Raducanu, who became the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam when she beat Leylah Fernandez in the US Open final in New York, has been working with new coach Torben Beltz ahead of what will be her first full season on the WTA Tour.
The teenager will also be in isolation for Sunday’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year show, where she is up against Tom Daley, Tyson Fury, Adam Peaty, Raheem Sterling and Sarah Storey in the public vote for Britain’s top sportsperson of 2021.
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