WTA Cincinnati Controversy: Venus Williams and Emma Raducanu Face Brutal Snub for Promising American Youngsters
With tennis fanfare at the Paris Olympic Games done and dusted, all the eyes will now shift to the ATP and the WTA Tours. Amid the mega-event in Paris, the hard-court tournaments on both tours were going on in full swing, which saw some enthralling action over the last week. The US Open isn’t far away and the players will look to warm up for the year’s final Grand Slam tournament in the subsequent tournaments. However, the former US Open champion, Emma Raducanu, suffered a major setback even before the start of the major event in New York. So did an American veteran.
The Cincinnati Open, one of the prestigious events before the US Open, takes place next week, where top tennis stars will be seen in action, including the likes of Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff. Earlier today, the tournament released a list of wildcard entrants, and to the surprise of many, Raducanu was excluded from that list.
Former Grand Slam champions, Caroline Wozniacki and Bianca Andreescu have received the main-draw wildcards along with local players, Peyton Stearns and Caroline Dolehide. Both Stearns and Dolehide are rising stars on the tour and have the home advantage. Another renowned name to miss out on a wildcard spot was the American legend, Venus Williams. The 44-year-old is hoping to play in the US Open but is yet to confirm her comeback tournament.
Not only was Raducanu snubbed from the main draw wildcards but also from the qualifying wildcards. In the singles qualifying draw, the two wildcard spots went to Taylor Townsend and Canadian Marina Stakusic. Raducanu’s current ranking of Number 69 made her ineligible to qualify directly in the tournament and she was banking on a wildcard spot. However, to her disappointment, the tournament’s organizers preferred local players over her, which depicted their American bias. Despite missing out on a spot in Cincinnati, Raducanu is continuing her rise on the WTA Tour. Last week, she made a candid revelation about her rise on the tour.
Emma Raducanu reveals forthcoming plans
The British tennis sensation made a comeback this year after a saddening run of injuries. Although she didn’t have a great comeback, Raducanu has found some form going into the US Open swing. Ranked outside the top 200 at the beginning of the year, she has risen to the 69th spot on the WTA rankings chart.
Opening up about her upcoming plans, she said, “I started the grass season ranked outside of 200 and finished it in the top 100. For me that was relatively successful. It guaranteed me a spot hopefully in the main draw of the US [Open]. That was a big thing for me. I wanted to make sure I got into the Slams.”
Raducanu reached the quarterfinals of the Citi Open last week but went down fighting against Paula Badosa. Nonetheless, she gave a good account of herself and looks in good shape for the US Open later this month.
