Emma Raducanu’s supporters have leapt to her defence against internet trolls who accused the tennis star of faking injury problems after she retired from her Korea Open quarter-final.
The 21-year-old Briton had just lost the first set 6-1 against top seed Daria Kasatkina when she withdrew having struggled with a foot issue.
Raducanu had previously beaten two top-50 players in Seoul en route to the last eight, in American Peyton Stearns and China’s Yue Yuan.
Looking to make just her second ever WTA Tour semi-final, having also reached the last four in Nottingham in June, the 2021 US Open champion initially saw her match against world number 13 Kasatkina rained off on Friday.
When the contest then did get underway on Saturday, Raducanu – who spoke earlier this week of wanting to play as many matches as possible before the end of the season – was broken by her Russian opponent in the second game.
She immediately broke back, but was unable to build on that and, after Kasatkina had wrapped up the set, Raducanu went over and shook her hand having decided due to the foot problem that she would not continue.
‘I feel sorry for Emma … it’s easy to get injured, especially deep into these tournaments,’ Kasatkina said.
‘I wish her a speedy recovery.’
But not everyone was as gracious as Raducanu’s opponent, with social media trolls coming out of the woodwork to brutally criticise the athlete.
‘I see this for years now. Nothing new here. This is exactly the pattern Emma Raducanu have. Rather give up with a fake injury then losing the match,’ X user @zuurtje3 wrote, adding it was ‘pathetic acting’.
‘Whenever Emma starts losing the game, she quits it If you don’t believe me then check Emma’s old match records Whenever Emma starts losing the match, she makes an excuse of injury and leaves the match out of fear,’ @hddhakad9 added.
Another user @augford called her ‘a failure’ and @moto26261 echoed: ”Injured’ again whilst losing… What a shock.’
But many also hit back against the haters and supported Emma online.
‘Yeah usually, if you’re in pain or injured it’s likely to be affecting your performance and as your not physically fit, you’re probably losing. It’s not a massive conspiracy,’ @adoomosaurus pointed out.
‘Were you there muppet head?’ @hereford1terra responded to someone claiming it was a ‘fake injury’. ‘The trolls have got to try and find something negative to say when there isn’t anything. Poor souls,’ the user added.
As for the Korea Open, the winner of the clash between fourth seed Diana Shnaider and fifth seed Marta Kostyuk will meet Kasatkina in the semi-finals later on Saturday, after rain washed out Friday’s play in Seoul.
Earlier in the day, Brazilian third seed Beatriz Haddad Maia brushed aside lucky loser Polina Kudermetova 6-2 6-1 to set up a last-four clash with Veronika Kudermetova, who beat Viktoriya Tomova 7-5 6-3.
What has Emma Raducanu said about her injuries?
Since making her astonishing breakthrough at the US Open three years ago, Raducanu’s career has been plagued by a series of unfortunate and debilitating injury setbacks.
The 21-year-old has been cruelly ridiculed for her fitness struggles and inability to finish matches, as well as burning through a series of different coaches who have attempted to get her career back on track.
Speaking ahead of the summer swing, Raducanu opened up on the severity of her injuries which saw her undergo surgery on both of her wrists last year having been in chronic pain.
‘I think it’s very easy for me to lose sight of where I was exactly a year ago,” she said. “You get so caught up in your own world that you want more and more and more, but I was on a [mobility] scooter scooting around and there was an element of doubt. To be healthy and to be here, I need to cherish it.
‘It was pretty surreal because I couldn’t be on crutches because I’d had two wrist surgeries, so I had a cast on one hand, a splint on the other and my ankle was also pretty much immobilised. As someone who is so active it’s difficult to just shut your body down.
‘Body-wise I feel really healthy now. I feel really strong. I’ve done amazing work with my trainer over the last few months since surgery. I’m in a really fit place. I’m healthy and just looking forward to starting playing.’
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