Emma Raducanu has been told she would be wise to end her season early after ruling herself out of the US Open. The British No. 1 has not played since finishing runner-up at the Queen's Club almost two months ago, with a stress fracture forcing her out of Wimbledon. Express Sport understands that Raducanu, 23, will also miss the US Open after consulting with her medical team.
Pundits suggest full recovery
Former player-turned-pundit Annabel Croft believes Raducanu could benefit from shutting down her season altogether and returning in 2027. By the time the US Open finishes on September 13, the world No. 49 will have missed three months of competition. She has also not been included in Britain's Billie Jean King Cup Finals squad, with the team tournament starting September 22.
The earliest Raducanu could return would be during the Asian swing in autumn, a portion of the season that means a lot to her as her mother is from China and Raducanu speaks Mandarin. But Croft and fellow Sky Sports commentator Pede Odgers have questioned whether she should forego the rest of the season to focus on recovery and guarantee herself a protected ranking.
Protected ranking considerations
Should Raducanu miss at least six months due to injury, she can use a special ranking for a select number of events upon her return. This would be her top-50 ranking from during the grass season, the last time she competed. The 23-year-old is at risk of dropping down the rankings, having racked up 455 points during last year's North American hard-court swing in Washington, Canada, Cincinnati, and the US Open, with even more points to defend during the Asian swing.
Odgers questioned whether she should cut her season short to get a protected ranking next year. "Would she be sensible to say, Hey, look, let's focus on 2027 start of the season?" he asked Croft.
"Well, you know, it wouldn't be a surprise if she made that decision, and probably that wouldn't be such a bad decision to take, because you can fully heal, rest up, get as much treatment as possible, and then come out fully fit, raring to go at the start of next year," the former player replied. "But the business side of tennis, I'm sure there's a lot of enticing things coming her way down in Asia, where she wants to play her best tennis down there as well, and she'll be very much in demand. Who knows? Maybe if there's a worry about the ranking drop, as you've said, with so many points to defend, and potentially that ranking could plummet, although she might benefit from the protected ranking. All of these factors had to be considered, didn't they? But at the end of the day, your health is your wealth, as they say, and that is the most important factor. She just needs to get herself fit."
Setbacks and future
For now, there have been no further updates on Raducanu's progress aside from her US Open withdrawal and the need to continue recovering from the stress fracture in her leg. The British No. 1 has faced plenty of setbacks this year, as her pre-season was derailed by bone bruising in her right foot, and she missed more than two months of competition due to post-viral illness. When healthy, Raducanu has reached two finals and will hope to rediscover that form whenever she returns.
