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Emma Raducanu finds a silver lining despite early exit from Wuhan Open

Originally posted on HITC | By Max Kilham | Last updated Oct 7, 2025 7:33 AM ET

Emma Raducanu, the top-ranked British player, had to retire from her opening match at the Wuhan Open on Tuesday due to illness.

She was trailing America’s Ann Li 6-1, 4-1 when she took a medical timeout before deciding she couldn’t continue.

The Brit looked unwell throughout and fans will be hoping she recovers quickly. The result hardly seemed important after what happened on the court.

Even though an early exit is never easy to take, there were still positives for Raducanu to build on despite feeling under the weather.

Emma Raducanu moves up a apot in the WTA Rankings despite losing

Emma Raducanu’s points remain unchanged after her retirement in Wuhan, meaning the defeat won’t have much impact on her standing.

The Briton didn’t have any points to defend from last year, as she missed the 2024 tournament due to a foot injury.

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As a result, she stays on 1,563 points in the latest update. Elsewhere, there was movement around her position, with Veronika Kudermetova dropping two places after losing 52 points following her early exit to Magdalena Frech.

Raducanu moved up one spot to 29th because of that result, while Dayana Yastremska also climbed one place. Kudermetova fell two spots and now sits between the pair.

No return date has been set for Raducanu following her health scare in Wuhan. It’s still unclear when she’ll play next as she takes time to recover fully before making any decisions about upcoming tournaments.

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If cleared to compete again this season, she may appear at either the WTA 250 event in Japan or the Ningbo Open in China. Both are set for October 13-19, giving her some time before potentially returning.

Emma Raducanu edges closer to a seeded spot at the Australian Open

With just three weeks remaining in the tournament schedule before the WTA Finals get underway in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, time is running out for players to make their final moves up the rankings.

Raducanu currently holds the 30th spot on the WTA Tour. If seedings for the Australian Open were decided today, she would just make the cut.

However, with several events still to be played before then, her place among the seeds isn’t secured yet. There’s still plenty of tennis left that could impact her standing.

Regardless of how it plays out, Raducanu’s strong performance this season has put her in a position to be part of these conversations again. She now has a realistic shot at earning her first Grand Slam seeding since she was last seeded at Melbourne Park back in 2022.

This article first appeared on HITC and was syndicated with permission.

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