Raducanu has returned to London after a disturbing incident of being tracked in Dubai. The 22-year-old had tears in her eyes as she was reunited with her father at the airport, and the shock was evidently still intact.
After beating Sakkari in the first round of the Dubai WTA1000 tournament, Raducanu lost to Mukhova 6(6)-7 4-6 in the second round. In the opening set of the match, Raducanu showed signs of concern as she burst into tears as she ducked behind the referee's bench and looked panicked as security officers took a man from the stands.
Fans poured out their sympathy for the former US Open champion, praising her mental toughness as she finished the match. Afterward, Raducanu updated her Instagram status, writing: "Ad Astra per Aspera (Latin, meaning 'through hardship, to the stars'). These words express her determination to find inspiration and overcome difficulties during this ordeal.
The WTA then issued a statement revealing that the man had also shown "obsessive behavior" towards Raducanu the day before and approached her. The WTA said the man will be banned from watching all the tour events live to ensure the safety of the 22-year-old Raducanu. Raducanu then arrived in London, but her mood did not recover, and at Heathrow Airport, she was found to be agitated and tearful as she was reunited with her father, Ion.
Considering the details revealed by member of her coaching team, Roman Kelecic, Raducanu's pain is not a surprise. He revealed that the man has been following Raducanu since the Singapore Open, first to Abu Dhabi, Doha and then to Dubai.
Keleć also recalled a shocking incident in which the man "excessively" embraced Raducanu in a restaurant at the tennis center and refused to leave, causing her to feel "terrified."
"He (the stalker) approached her and started hugging her non-stop, taking pictures with her, in short, he didn't leave her until Emma called me for help in a panic. It was the only time during the entire tournament that our team wasn't around her. He said on the Croatian portal Net.hr.
"The scariest thing is that he has obviously been monitoring her movements, and he obviously already has a plan in place to know when and how to approach her." He added.
After being reunited with her family, Raducanu plans to leave this painful experience behind her. She will next compete in the Wells Open in India, which is scheduled to start on March 5.
In the 2025 season, Raducanu did not perform well. She reached the third round of the Australian Open tennis tournament and currently has a season record of 3 wins and 5 losses.
After the tracking incident, Raducanu broke his silence and thanked the fans for their support. On Instagram, Raducanu expressed her gratitude for the messages of support she received and was proud that she was able to finish the race despite such a difficult situation. She also thanked her opponent Mukhova for her support during the match.
"Thank you all for your support. Yesterday was a difficult moment but I'll be okay and I'm proud that I was able to stick around and keep playing after something like this happened at the start of the race...... Thank you Karolina, you are a great athlete and good luck in the upcoming races. Raducanu wrote on Instagram.
Raducanu's coach, Roman Keleć, also praised the British's tenacity and mental toughness, saying it was not easy for her to keep going through the match. Kelech stressed that it is important for Raducanu to take the right time to sort out his emotions. "Kudos to Emma, she has enough mental strength to finish the race. She is very strong, but also vulnerable. The whole process is both worrying and scary. Kelech said.(Source: Tennis Home Author: Spark)