THE DUBAI EXODUS: WHY EMMA RADUCANU’S DRAW IS NOW A LUCKY LOSER LOTTERY
Emma Raducanu faces lucky loser Antonia Ruzic in Dubai! Read why Cocciaretto, Swiatek, and Sabalenka withdrew from the tournament.
Emma Raducanu’s got a new opponent for the Dubai Tennis Championships after some last-minute drama. Elisabetta Cocciaretto, who’s been on a real run lately, pulled out just hours before their match was supposed to happen. Cocciaretto, fresh off a big week in Doha where she beat Coco Gauff and made the quarter-finals, tried to keep the momentum going in Dubai. She had barely any time to catch her breath, lost in Doha, hopped on a plane, then jumped straight into Dubai qualifying. She won two matches to make the main draw, but her body gave out. She’s out with a thigh injury.
So now, it’s Antonia Ruzic stepping in as a lucky loser. She’s facing Raducanu in the fourth match on Court 2 on Monday. The news dropped just as play was getting underway in Dubai. And honestly, the tournament organisers must be tearing their hair out. There have been so many withdrawals that Ruzic is actually the sixth lucky loser who’s made it into the main draw. She lost in qualifying to Rebecca Sramkova, but here she is anyway. The same thing happened for Anastasia Zakharova, Hailey Baptiste, Peyton Stearns, Magdalena Frech, and Kamilla Rakhimova, all out in qualifying, all in the main draw now.
Cocciaretto just ran out of steam. After her deep run in Doha, she lost to Ostapenko on Thursday, and by Friday, she was already back on the court in Dubai, beating Donna Vekic in the first round of qualifying. Then she took out Zakharova to book her spot in the main draw, but the packed schedule caught up to her.
She’s not alone, either. Karolina Muchova, who just won her first WTA 1000 title in Doha, also pulled out of Dubai, chalking it up to a “change of schedule". Maria Sakkari and Olympic champ Qinwen Zheng both withdrew because they’re sick. And the biggest gut punch for the tournament? World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Swiatek both dropped out.
Sabalenka hasn’t played since losing the Australian Open final. Swiatek lost to Sakkari in the Doha quarters and admitted she’s not happy with her game right now; she wants to work on some new things, so she’s taking some time off.
Tournament director Salah Tahlak didn’t hide his frustration. He told The National that he thinks players who pull out late should face bigger penalties. “It was an unfortunate surprise to get news of the withdrawal of Aryna and Iga. And the reasons for withdrawal were a bit strange. Iga said she wasn't mentally ready to compete, while Sabalenka said she has some minor injuries,” he said.
As for Raducanu, this is her first Dubai match since last year’s weird scene with a fixated fan. She was left in tears after a man with a bit of an obsession showed up at her match with Muchova. She played on but lost in straight sets. The WTA later put out a statement saying the guy was spotted again during her match and then kicked out. He’s now banned from all WTA events until they finish a threat assessment.
WHY DID 22 PLAYERS SUDDENLY WITHDRAW FROM THE 2026 ITALIAN OPEN MID-TOURNAMENT?
Discover the full list of injured stars, including Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu, forced out of the 2026 Italian Open.
At the 2026 Italian Open, the number of players who have withdrawn or retired during matches has climbed to 22, spanning both the ATP and WTA competitions.
By midweek, 17 players had already exited the combined ATP/WTA 1000 event in Rome. Since then, an additional three men and two women have followed suit.
Before the draws were even announced on Monday, prominent names like Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Jack Draper, and Marketa Vondrousova had pulled out. On the opening day of the women’s tournament, Tuesday, Marta Kostyuk and Emma Raducanu also withdrew.
Amanda Anisimova, ranked sixth in the WTA, stepped back before her first match on Thursday due to a left wrist injury. Meanwhile, Victoria Mboko, who is ninth in the world, withdrew before playing on Friday because of a gastrointestinal illness.
Valentin Vacherot, the 16th-ranked player on the ATP tour, pulled out shortly before his scheduled second-round match against Marin Cilic on Friday, citing a foot injury.
Tomas Machac, holding the 41st spot in the men's rankings, also withdrew ahead of his second-round encounter with Daniil Medvedev after an impactful win against Stefanos Tsitsipas in round one.
Arthur Fils, ranked 17th, retired during his opening match against Andrea Pellegrino on Saturday, trailing 0-4, due to hip pain.
Here’s a rundown of the withdrawals on the ATP side: Carlos Alcaraz (No. 2) was replaced by Sebastian Ofner; Taylor Fritz (No. 7) by Zachary Svajda; Valentin Vacherot (No. 16) by Martin Landaluce; Arthur Rinderknech (No. 24) by Aleksandar Kovacevic; Holger Rune (No. 40) by Damir Dzumhur; Gabriel Diallo (No. 46) by Alexander Blockx; Jack Draper (No. 50) by Hamad Medjedovic; Raphael Collignon (No. 68) by Alexandre Muller; Reilly Opelka (No. 74) by Aleksandar Vukic; Arthur Cazaux (No. 73) by Mattia Bellucci; Kamil Majchrzak (No. 76) by Roberto Bautista Agut; and Eliot Spizzirri (No. 92) by James Duckworth.
On the WTA side, Amanda Anisimova (No. 6) was replaced by Elena Gabriela Ruse from Romania; Victoria Mboko (No. 9) by Nikola Bartunkova; Marta Kostyuk (No. 15) by Ajla Tomljanovic; Emma Raducanu (No. 30) by Lilli Tagger; Marketa Vondrousova (No. 44) by Solana Sierra; Sonay Kartal (No. 56) by Zeynep Sonmez; Varvara Gracheva (No. 61) by Eva Lys; and Veronika Kudermetova (No. 70) by Petra Marcinko.
THE "REST OVER REPS" PLAN: WHY JANNIK SINNER IS SNUBBING HALLE FOR WIMBLEDON
After 23 consecutive wins, World No. 1 Jannik Sinner adjusts his schedule to target a Career Grand Slam and Wimbledon glory.
Jannik Sinner has already logged a heavy schedule this year, with deep runs in recent Masters 1000 tournaments keeping him on court against top-tier competition regularly. Given this demanding stretch, he’s taken a fresh look at his calendar and decided to skip the Halle Open, carving out a three-week break between Roland Garros and his Wimbledon title defence.
The 2024 Wimbledon champion won’t be heading to Germany for the grass-court event. That’s notable since Sinner claimed that Wimbledon crown in impressive fashion, overcoming two-time winner Carlos Alcaraz to secure his first major title away from hardcourts. That victory was his latest Grand Slam, following Alcaraz’s wins at the previous two majors.
After Roland Garros, where he seeks to complete the career Grand Slam, Sinner plans to recharge rather than pile on more tournaments before Wimbledon. Without Alcaraz in sight, he’s considered a favourite to maintain his remarkable run. His recent haul includes titles at Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, and, most recently, Madrid. Now, he’s setting his sights on Rome, his home turf, where he’s never clinched a win but is eager to continue an ambitious streak of Masters 1000 victories, aiming for a sixth in a row.
Post-Rome, he’ll take a week off before the French Open begins. In total, Sinner has played 23 matches over the last two months without tasting defeat. If he wants to lift the Rome trophy, he’ll need to notch six more wins, then potentially battle through seven more rounds in Paris. This demanding schedule partly explains his choice to forgo Halle.
As for the 2026 Halle Open, fans might be disappointed not to see the world number one, but the field remains strong. Heading the draw is Alexander Zverev, a local favourite who has yet to claim a grass-court title or even one on home soil. With Sinner out, this could be a prime opportunity for Zverev to break through.
The American players are also well represented. The U.S. hasn’t seen a finalist here since Mardy Fish in 2004, but Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton might be poised to change that, especially Fritz, who has already shown grass prowess with titles in Stuttgart and Eastbourne last year.
Defending champion Alexander Bublik, who ousted Sinner on his way to victory and took down Daniil Medvedev in the final, will be back aiming to repeat. Alongside him, names like Andrey Rublev, Flavio Cobolli, and Frances Tiafoe are also set to compete. The tournament runs from June 15 to 21, promising plenty of exciting tennis.
