Emma Raducanu arrived in Rome with a sense of cautious optimism. She had been practicing at the Foro Italico for days, appeared physically present, and sat in front of the media to speak about the progress she made in the last few weeks. She stated, “I think I’ve really turned the corner and I feel so much better.” But moments after showing optimism about her campaign, the 23-year-old did something that nobody expected.

Raducanu has announced that she is withdrawing from the Italian Open due to post-viral syndrome, thus making it the fourth tournament she has failed to compete in a row. The timing of it made the news hit harder than it might have otherwise. 

The Brit’s last competitive match was in early March at Indian Wells, where she lost in the R32 to Amanda Anisimova. And when she arrived in Rome, she’d been granted a bye into the second round here and had a genuine opportunity to get competitive minutes on clay before Roland Garros, and that window has now closed. 

With this, the ranking implications are significant. By not competing in Rome, Raducanu fails to defend the 120 points she earned here last year when she reached the fourth round, and will drop to No. 37 in the live rankings, likely ending her chances of being seeded at Roland Garros – meaning she may have to rely on qualifying rounds or hope for a wildcard entry to get into the tournament.

She had risen to the 30th world rank after getting her stride back after a 2025 season that saw her emerge into the top 30 and earn seeded positions at the Slams. It’s a tough situation to have to play all that tennis without a single clay court game to prove it, in the middle of a spring swing. 

The origins of the illness trace back to a virus she picked up at the start of the Transylvania Open in Cluj in February. “I picked up like a virus, I think, at the start of the tournament,” she said at the time. “So I was dealing with that and the after-effects. I had really long effects for the last three weeks. I’ve been trying to clear them.” What followed were weeks of the same story: practicing, showing signs of improvement, and then being forced to pull out again.

Last week, Raducanu trained with Andrew Richardson at the Ferrer Tennis Academy near Alicante, Spain, the same coach who guided her to the 2021 US Open title. It was a reunion with a degree of symbolism, a reinvigoration with the old version that was able to catch a Grand Slam from qualifying. She had been training with childhood coach Jane O’Donoghue and physiotherapist Emma Stewart in Rome before she prepared for her return. It was obvious that there was an effort, but for now, the body is not cooperating. 

Former British No. 1 Greg Rusedski had been vocal about what he felt Raducanu needed to do. “Emma needs to get back on court,” he said. “You can’t just say, okay, let’s give up clay and let’s just get onto the grass courts. I think you’ve got to get the balance. The first thing is to get healthy. Get rid of this virus, get to your nutritionist, get your diet right, get your vitamin intake, what you need to get rid of this virus. Because it’s such a shame she hasn’t been able to play it.”

Emma Raducanu’s French Open participation in doubt

The last two clay tournaments for Emma Raducanu before Roland Garros are the Internationaux de Strasbourg from May 17 to 23 and the Rabat Grand Prix from May 18 to 23. Last year, she journeyed along the Strasbourg trail, securing a victory against Daria Kasatkina and then losing to Danielle Collins. It’s not known if she will be physically ready to do the same this season. 

The 23-year-old will arrive at Roland Garros, if she plays, with a clean slate of the red-dirt seasons, i.e., more than two months without competitive tennis of any kind. This is a big disadvantage at a tournament where the preparation of the clay is as important as anywhere on the tour. Being unseeded and cold at a Slam where she could have been easily seeded is not a situation in which Raducanu wanted to find herself when heading into the Grand Slam month. 

The top 20 WTA players will all play in Rome, where Jasmine Paolini hopes to retain the title she won 12 months ago. The draw Raducanu was supposed to be in goes on without her. It’s the tale of her 2026 season thus far, marked by a list of tournament question marks, a ranking that continues to drop, and an illness that still hasn’t fully let go. It’s never been a lack of talent. That doesn’t often happen with Raducanu. It is the time she spends on court, long enough for that talent to be showcased, but that keeps eluding her.