Emma Raducanu has hit the practice court as she ramps up her recovery from her wrist injury.
But tennis fans noticed one bizarre difference as the British No.1 posted a training routine on social media - she was hitting balls left-handed. Raducanu's debilitating right wrist injury forced her to end her first full season on the WTA tour early as she pulled out of the Transylvania Open and Billie Jean King Cup in Glasgow.
The 20-year-old was left unable to hit as the latest injury derailed the end of a difficult season on tour. Raducanu's preparations were disrupted by covid, before she suffered with blisters, back problems and other muscle issues throughout the campaign.
The 2021 US Open was unable to replicate the brilliance that propelled her to stardom with her magical victory at Flushing Meadows last September. Stifled by persistent injury problems, Raducanu ended the 2022 season with a 17-19 negative record and has set about improving her fitness as she looks to cope with the demands of the WTA tour.
Raducanu has now enlisted the help of Andy Murray's former strength coach Jez Green in a bid to boost her fitness levels before 2023. And in an encouraging update posted on her Instagram story, Raducanu has shown fans a video practicing her footwork and movement on the practice court.
Raducanu was clearly excited to be back out on court as she posted the caption “tnnsssss!!!!”, but she only hit balls with her left hand, proving her wrist has not yet reached the stage of recovery where she can hit normal forehands.
But Raducanu still struck the ball well off her left hand as she gears up for an exhibition match before the start of the 2023 campaign. She is scheduled to face world No 2 Ons Jabeur in an Abu Dhabi exhibition next month, but it is unlikely she will risk playing if her wrist has not fully healed.
Raducanu has just over a month before her first tournament of her 2023 campaign, as he starts her season at Auckland's ASB Classic early in January.
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