Emma Raducanu left the court in tears after she injured her ankle during her second-round tie against Viktoria Kuzmova. The British number one blamed the "slippery" courts for her injury, which has thrown her participation at the Australian Open in doubt.
Friday 6 January 2023 15:39, UK
The indoor courts in Auckland are "fit to play on" after Emma Raducanu said they were "slippery" after the former US Open champion was injured on Thursday.
The British number one was forced to retire from her second-round match against Viktoria Kuzmova at the ASB Classic after rolling her left ankle.
Raducanu's team remain hopeful she has only suffered a minor strain and will be cleared to play in this year's opening Grand Slam, the Australian Open, starting on January 16, after the 20-year-old left the court in tears.
Bad weather in Auckland meant the match was played indoors, and Raducanu blamed the "slick" and "very slippery" courts for her injury.
But tournament director Nicolas Lamperin hit back at Raducanu's claims, insisting the indoor courts were safe.
"The courts have been checked, the courts are fit to play. We've had a number of matches on these courts, and we haven't had any injuries apart from yesterday and the courts had been redone at the start of the year," he said.
"We are obviously very sorry about Emma's injury. Every player works really hard in the off-season, and that's not what you expect when you play a tournament in week one.
"However, injuries happen all the time. It could have happened on an outdoor court."
Radacanu's tearful exit from the ASB Classic came just as she was returning to full fitness after an injury-affected 2022, culminating in a wrist issue that meant she missed tennis for two months.
She was hoping to be firing for the Australian Open in Melbourne and began 2023 feeling good physically, winning her first match in Auckland against Linda Fruhvirtova.
The extent of her injury is currently unknown but Raducanu will head to Melbourne and PA news agency understands her team hope it's a minor strain and she will be fit for the opening Grand Slam of the year.
