Injured Raducanu skips fifth event in Asia swing, in race to be fit for BJK Cup

PARIS (Agencies): Former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu has pulled out of the Hong Kong Open after the Briton said on Wednesday that she has still not recovered from a foot injury that had forced her to skip four other tournaments in recent weeks. Raducanu, who is now ranked 55 in the world after reaching a career-high 10th in 2022, has not played since she retired midway through her quarter-final match at the Korea Open last month. “I’m sorry to say that I will not be able to play in Hong Kong next week. Whilst my foot is making good progress, I need a little more time before I am match fit. I hope to be able to come back and play this tournament in the future,” she wrote on X. Raducanu has struggled with injuries since winning her only Grand Slam title in 2021 and the 21-year-old spent most of last season recovering from ankle and wrist surgeries. She revealed last month that she had sprained ligaments in her foot which forced her to skip WTA 1000 events in Beijing and Wuhan as well as events in Ningbo and Guangzhou. She is now in a race to be fit for the Billie Jean King Cup finals where Britain face Germany in the first round in Malaga on Nov. 15. “In the meantime, I am doing what I can to be ready for BJKC,” she added.