Emma Raducanu is likely to take part in the Roland Garros qualifiers after already withdrawing from the Internationaux de Strasbourg. Photo: Getty Images/Mateo Villalba
Emma Raducanu may have to fight to qualify if she wants to play at the French Open after tournament organizers denied her a wild card into the main draw.
Raducanu's protected ranking (103rd) is not high enough to give her direct entry into Roland Garros, although there is still the possibility that she could be delayed by a wave of late withdrawals among players ranked above her.
< p>With Raducanu also reportedly withdrawing from next week's WTA tournament in Strasbourg, it appears she's already resigned to an extra week of competition at Roland Garros. These two commitments could potentially conflict with each other.
Raducanu is one of four high-profile players to receive a snub – or perhaps we should call it a Gallic shrug – from the French Tennis Federation (FFT). .
“There is also a qualifying week ahead for Dominic Thiem, a two-time Roland Garros finalist who will retire at the end of the season due to a persistent wrist injury. This is perhaps the most surprising decision, as Thiem, 30, is a hugely popular player who would likely have won the French Open if his career had not coincided with Rafael Nadal's two-decade reign.
“There is also Simona Halep, the Romanian who won the tournament in 2018 but has barely played tennis since she tested positive for the banned steroid Roxadustat at the end of the 2022 season. Halep, who is currently outside the world's top 1,000, was later cleared by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, but has only appeared in one match this season, losing in three sets to Paula Badosa.
Finally, the former No. 1 world Caroline Wozniacki also returns after a maternity break. She is ranked 119th despite a recent strong run to the Indian Wells quarterfinals, but did not qualify for Roland Garros and will not compete in the event.
Raducanu showed some encouraging form. her own earlier this clay court season. Having led Great Britain to victory in the Billie Jean King Cup match against France, she then sent world number one Iga Swiatek to a tiebreaker in the quarter-finals in Stuttgart.
“But any optimism about sustained success evaporated when Raducanu crashed out of the Madrid Open in the first round, having collected just four games against an unknown Argentine opponent. That was April 24, three weeks ago, and she hasn't played since.
FFT's approach to the wild card can be summed up as “We're good, Jacques.” All 18 qualifying wild cards went to French players, and 12 went to the main draw.
An additional two main draw wild cards were awarded to the Americans and two to the Australians as part of the swap. an agreement that entitles an additional Frenchman and a Frenchwoman to the US Open and Australian Open.
While the other three Grand Slam nations can take care of their own, the All England Club considers itself too big for that insider trading. Their stance has not helped Raducan, who remains outside the world's top 200, in her attempts to regain her ranking.
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