From the sidelines: Greg Rusedski breaks down Emma Raducanu’s Rome preparation

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Emma Raducanu was on the verge of playing at the Italian Open, but ended up pulling out just before the tournament began.

The Brit withdrew from Rome shortly after completing a round of media interviews on Tuesday.

Raducanu hasn’t played in any WTA Tour event since Indian Wells back in March.

She missed the Miami Open due to illness and opted out of Rome, saying she still wasn’t fully over a post-viral infection.

Photo by James D. Morgan/Getty Images

Greg Rusedski shares his thoughts on Emma Raducanu’s decision to pull out of Rome

Rusedski spoke about the situation on an episode of ‘Off Court with Greg‘, where he said: “It’s such a shame because I watched her practice session.

“She’s hitting the ball well, she’s taking it early, she had like two practice sessions most days and then all of a sudden, you know, everybody in the media is thinking, okay great, she’s gonna restart up.

“They’ve put all the press out there saying she’s playing in Rome and then boom, all of a sudden she’s not playing. The virus reappears.

“I don’t know whether she’s got to get her nutrition up, whether she’s gotta get a diet up, whether she’s got to find some sort of solution because it’s been a long, long time since she’s played a match.

“The last match she’s played was Indian Wells and I mean, it feels like an eternity ago and I hope she finds some way to get back. She needs matches.

“If she’s gonna go into grass court season, you know, even if you don’t play well in clay, it doesn’t matter because you’re on court, you’re doing the reps and they pay off later.

“But, you know, it looks like at the moment she might just be starting up with the French or she might just say, okay, fine, clay’s done, I’m gonna cure this virus and get ready for grass court season but we’d all love to see her back, and we’d all love to know what’s happening.