Emma Raducanu handed nightmare Italian Open draw as star makes tennis comeback | Tennis | Sport

Emma Raducanu has been handed a nightmare draw ahead of this month’s Italian Open in Rome. It’s expected to be the first time the Brit has competed in a competitive tournament for two months, with her last outing coming at Indian Wells in early March.

Raducanu most recently pulled out of the Madrid Open, as her nightmare start to 2026 continued. The 2021 US Open winner cited an injury to her right hand and is yet to play a single match of the clay-court swing.

She will begin her campaign against either Sierra Solana or a qualifier, having been given a bye into round two. However, it’s after that where things start to get tricky, as Raducanu will most likely come up against the reigning French Open champion, Coco Gauff, in the third round.

Mirra Andreeva is the highest-ranked potential opponent in the quarter-finals, while world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka is also on the same half of the draw as Raducanu. The 23-year-old enjoyed her best run at the Italian Open last year, reaching the fourth round, where prospective third-round opponent, Gauff, knocked her out.

On the men’s side, Jannik Sinner will enter the tournament on the back of an impressive Madrid Open victory, having dropped just one set throughout. The world No.1 has never won his home championship, and he’ll begin with either Sebastian Ofner or Alex Michelsen in round two.

On the topic of returns, Novak Djokovic is also set for his first clay contest of the season, having been sidelined since Indian Wells. He’s been drawn on the opposite side of the draw to Sinner, so won’t have the chance to play him until the final, but Djokovic’s campaign will begin against either Marton Fucsovics or a qualifier in round two.