Emma Raducanu forced to warm up in the dark after United Cup confusion | Tennis | Sport
Emma Raducanu was forced to warm up for her first match of the 2026 season in the dark as she geared up to face Maria Sakkari at the United Cup. The world No. 29 is representing Team GB at the mixed-gender team tournament, but things got off on a tough note when Raducanu withdrew from her first match of the season against Japan’s Naomi Osaka on Sunday, and was replaced by Katie Swan.
There were concerns that Raducanu may not be ready to take to the court against Sakkari during Britain’s tie against Greece on Monday. And there was further confusion when the on-court emcee at Perth’s RAC Arena wrongly announced that Swan would again be competing in the women’s singles.
But Raducanu was ready to go. After Britain’s Billy Harris won the first set of the men’s singles clash against Stefanos Tsitsipas, the 23-year-old left the team bench and went to warm up. She was first spotted in the gym with coach Francisco Roig and physiotherapist Emma Stewart.
Raducanu and Stewart realised they were on camera and laughed as they pointed to Roig, who was enjoying a workout of his own. The broadcast later cut to Raducanu while she was outside on a practice court with her coaches in the darkness.
The outside practice courts at the United Cup venue in Perth don’t have floodlights, but Roig and Stewart were trying to get around the issue by turning their phone torches on.
Commentator David Culbert told viewers: “This was just a moment ago out on the outside practice court here, sort of in the car park. And there’s no lights out there so teammates with their phone lights to help proceedings. You can see, there’s a road behind them, which helps.”
John Fitzgerald added: “It’s all about approach, if you can hit the ball in the dark, imagine what you can do in here!”
Raducanu has not played since losing in the first round of the Ningbo Open in October, when she had her vitals checked mid-match. The British No. 1 was dealing with illness during the Asian swing and ended her 2025 season early, missing the last two tournaments of the year.
She then suffered from light bone bruising in her right foot during the off-season and skipped two exhibition matches in America as a result. And the foot issue still seems to be bothering Raducanu, who skipped her match against Osaka on Sunday.
Team GB captain Tim Henman later said: “She struggled with her foot for the end of last year. The improvement that she’s made has been fantastic. She’s been practising in London, really only doing static drills, to be out on the practice court and moving and playing games. She is very close.”
And Raducanu now seems more than ready for her first match of the year against Sakkari following her nighttime warm-up. The Brit has a perfect 4-0 record against the Greek star.
