‘I’ll be OK,’ says Emma Raducanu after incident with ‘fixated’ man in Dubai

Emma Raducanu has insisted “I’ll be OK” after the behaviour of a male spectator brought on the British tennis star to pause a match in tears and raised once more the difficulty of safety for feminine athletes.

The 22-year-old spoke of the “troublesome expertise” she endured throughout her Dubai Tennis Championships match towards Karolina Muchova on Tuesday night time, when she was pressured to alert officers mid-match to the presence of a person within the stands who had accosted her earlier within the event.

The British No 2 was had seemed uncomfortable in shedding the primary two video games in her match towards the world No 17 and earlier than the third recreation approached the umpire’s chair in tears.

Following a dialogue with the event director, safety officers ejected the spectator earlier than the match resumed. Raducanu slipped 4-0 behind earlier than battling again to ship the primary set right into a tie-break however finally fell to a 7-6 (6), 6-4 defeat.

The person who had earlier exhibited “fixated behaviour” in the direction of Raducanu, within the phrases of the Girls’s Tennis Affiliation (WTA), might be banned from all future WTA occasions, pending a “menace evaluation”.

“Thanks for the messages of help,” Raducanu stated on Instagram. “Tough expertise yesterday however I’ll be OK and pleased with how I got here again and competed regardless of what occurred at first of the match. Thanks to Karolina for being an important sport and better of luck to her for the remainder of the event.”

The WTA stated it was “actively working with Emma and her crew” to offer safety to the previous US Open champion after the incident and stated it was “dedicated … to sustaining a protected surroundings for all gamers”.

These have been sentiments echoed by the LTA, the governing physique of British tennis, which expects to host Raducanu on the HSBC Open this summer time, when the ladies’s recreation will return to Queen’s Membership in west London for the primary time in over 50 years.

The LTA stated in a press release that it had been in touch with Raducanu and promised “intensive” safety preparations for upcoming tournaments within the UK.

“This incident as soon as once more highlights points round security that each one gamers, however feminine gamers particularly, can face,” the LTA stated. “We now have help accessible for British gamers and have been in touch with Emma and her crew following the occasions in Dubai.

“We now have intensive safety preparations at our occasions in Britain and maintain these underneath fixed evaluation. The excursions have robust processes in place already and we’ll proceed to work collectively together with police and safety suppliers to cope with conditions like this robustly.”

The WTA’s assertion on the incident learn: “Emma Raducanu was approached in a public space by a person who exhibited fixated behaviour. This identical particular person was recognized within the first few rows throughout Emma’s match on Tuesday on the Dubai Obligation Free Tennis Championships and subsequently ejected.

“Participant security is our high precedence, and tournaments are suggested on safety greatest practices for worldwide sporting occasions. The WTA is actively working with Emma and her crew to make sure her well-being and supply any essential help. We stay dedicated to collaborating with tournaments and their safety groups worldwide to keep up a protected surroundings for all gamers.”

In 2022, Amrit Magar was given a five-year restraining order and a group service order for stalking Raducanu, who was a youngster on the time, in London. The 35-year-old was discovered to have made a number of visits to her household residence and stole gadgets that had been left on the entrance porch.

Talking on the time, Raducanu stated she felt like “my freedom has been taken away from me” by Magar, including: “I’m continuously trying over my shoulder. I really feel on edge and nervous this might occur once more.”

She is way from the one feminine skilled to have been stalked on this planet of tennis. Final 12 months Katie Boulter, the British No 1, informed the Guardian she had acquired threats of violence from males attending tournaments she was competing in. The American Danielle Collins has additionally recounted her personal experiences, telling the Telegraph: “I don’t actually go many locations on my own, I ensure I at all times have safety on web site, and it’s been one thing I feel that has affected me very personally.”