Organisers of the Dubai Open have shared an announcement following Emma Raducanu’s ‘stalker’ ordeal which noticed the previous British No1 in seen misery as a person displaying ‘fixated behaviour’ was escorted away from her second-round match.
Raducanu was simply two video games right down to Karolina Muchova on Tuesday night when play was dropped at a halt with the previous US Open champion in tears, earlier than rapidly discussing the problem with umpire Miriam Bley who was seen speaking with event organisers off courtroom by way of her walkie-talkie.
The 21-year-old then hid behind the umpire’s chair and needed to be comforted by Bley and her opponent Muchova, earlier than play may resume.
The WTA confirmed {that a} man had beforehand approached Raducanu at her first-round match towards Maria Sakkari, including in an announcement that the governing physique have been working with the participant to make sure her security.
The person has been banned from WTA occasions.
However organisers have been eager to additionally share their assist of the participant, whose eventual straight-sets defeat to former top-10 star Muchova could have been prompted by the distressing incident.
Emma Raducanu was dropped at tears in distressing scenes on the Dubai Open on Tuesday
The participant rapidly spoke to the umpire earlier than ducking behind her chair, the place she was comforted by her opponent Karolina Muchova
‘We absolutely assist the assertion made earlier at this time by the WTA in regard to an incident involving Emma Raducanu on February 17,’ their assertion learn.
‘The event safety staff labored in collaboration with the WTA safety staff to proactively establish and instantly eject the person in query from the stadium throughout Emma’s second-round match on Tuesday.
‘We assist the WTA’s choice to ban the person in query from all WTA occasions, and share the Tour’s longstanding dedication to participant welfare, security and wellbeing.
‘We thank Emma for her contribution to this yr’s event, and stay up for welcoming her again subsequent yr.’
Raducanu has beforehand been focused by undesirable and troubling consideration from obsessive followers, seeing a five-year ban handed out to a stalker who walked 23 miles to her household dwelling in late 2021.
Amrit Magar, 35, was convicted in early 2022 after being discovered responsible of sending love notes, visiting Raducanu’s dwelling on three separate events, and stealing a shoe which he believed belonged to the then-19-year-old participant.
Raducanu later admitted in an announcement shared with the courtroom that the expertise had left her ‘continually trying over her shoulder’ and feeling as if her ‘freedom had been taken away’.
The participant had beforehand been trying to construct on snapping her dropping streak after a assured defeat of Sakkari within the first spherical.
Raducanu had beforehand misplaced three matches in a row, failing to make it previous of the primary spherical at each the Abu Dhabi Open and the Qatar Open on the heels of her Australian Open exit final month.
