Emma Raducanu says she is “proud” of how she reacted to a “difficult experience” at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday, where she was approached by a man displaying “fixated behaviour” ahead of her defeat to Karolina Muchova.
The individual was subsequently ejected from the court by security and will be banned from all future WTA events “pending a threat assessment”.
Raducanu was in tears as she went to the umpire’s chair after the second game of her rain-delayed second-round match on Tuesday and went on to lose 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 to 14th seed Muchova.
“Thank you for the messages of support,” Raducanu posted on Instagram on Wednesday.
“Difficult experience yesterday but I’ll be okay and proud of how I came back and competed despite what happened at the start of the match.
“Thank you to Karolina for being a great sport and best of luck to her for the rest of the tournament.”
Muchova consoled Raducanu as the man was removed, before the Briton was applauded by other spectators as she resumed playing.
Raducanu lost the first two games after the restart to slip 4-0 down but rallied to take the first set to a tie-break.
Highlights of the Dubai Championship match between Raducanu and Karolina Muchova
WTA: Player safety is our top priority
A statement from the Women’s Tennis Association read: “On Monday, February 17, Emma Raducanu was approached in a public area by a man who exhibited fixated behaviour.
“This same individual was identified in the first few rows during Emma’s match on Tuesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and subsequently ejected. He will be banned from all WTA events pending a threat assessment.
“Player safety is our top priority, and tournaments are advised on security best practices for international sporting events.
“The WTA is actively working with Emma and her team to ensure her well-being and provide any necessary support.
“We remain committed to collaborating with tournaments and their security teams worldwide to maintain a safe environment for all players.”
The WTA says it will support Raducanu after the incidents in Dubai
A spokesperson for the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) told Sky Sports News. “This incident once again highlights issues around safety that all players, but female players in particular, can face.
“We have support available for British players and have been in contact with Emma and her team following the events in Dubai. We have extensive security arrangements at our events in Britain and keep these under constant review.
“The tours have strong processes in place already and we will continue to work together along with police and security providers to deal with situations like this robustly.”
In 2022, a man who walked 23 miles to Raducanu’s London home was given a five-year restraining order.
Raducanu’s fellow Brit Katie Boulter told the Guardian in December she has been followed in the past, saying: “It happens to all of us, it’s part of life when you’re in the public eye a little bit. Obviously you don’t feel comfortable.”
Boulter added: “One time in Nottingham, I had someone messaging me on social media saying: ‘I’m outside. I’m going to hurt you if you come outside.’ Obviously I alerted the WTA, and they found the guy, who was on site.
Katie Boulter says she has been followed in the past, saying ‘it happens to all of us’
“Things like this happen all the time. Obviously we are very well protected, which makes you feel safe. The WTA does a great job of being there for you. I do feel we are protected as much as possible, which puts your mind at ease a little bit.”
Overend: Security paramount – and we need empathy for Raducanu
Sky Sports Tennis’ Jonathan Overend on the Emma Raducanu situation in Dubai:
“It was distressing to see, particularly when Raducanu was cowering behind the umpire’s chair, and I think it highlights three things.
“First and foremost, the safeguarding and security, which is absolutely paramount, and secondly the resilience of Raducanu to complete the match. I find it remarkable she made the match close, it was an incredible effort.
“I also think it highlights the need for empathy when we are talking about athletes who sadly have to deal with this sort of thing in their personal lives.
“With Raducanu the talk is about, ‘why hasn’t she won another major championship?’ Well, look at scenes like this and the social media abuse.
Emma Raducanu played at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday
“We see a lot of tennis on the stadium courts with security on every entrance. That is not the reality around tournaments with multiple courts, some very small with just a bench on either side of the fence.
“It is possible to get very close to individuals, not just in matches but as they manoeuvre around. There is obviously security in place but it always needs to be reassessed and at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
“You can add on the daily social media stalking. The WTA talks about ‘fixated behaviour’ and that is impactful to these athletes as well.”
Dubai tournament organisers added: “The tournament security team worked in collaboration with the WTA security team to proactively identify and immediately eject the individual in question from the stadium.
“We support the WTA’s decision to ban the individual in question from all WTA events, and share the Tour’s longstanding commitment to player welfare, safety and wellbeing.”
