Emma Raducanu provides insights. © ANSA / ALI HAIDER

“Could hardly breathe”: Tennis star gives insights

Tennis star Emma Raducanu has spoken for the first time about the stalking incident at the tournament in Dubai in mid-February.

March 05, 2025

From: dpa

She "literally couldn't see the ball because of all the tears and I could hardly breathe," said the Briton ahead of the Indian Wells tournament. Since the incident, she has been more vigilant and has increased security measures.

In Dubai, a man made the 2021 US Open champion cry in her second-round match against Czech Karolína Muchová. The man had already followed her to the tournaments in Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Doha.

Information passed on too late

One day before the match, the man approached Raducanu near the players' hotel, gave her a letter and took a photo with the 22-year-old. She reported this to her own team, but they did not pass the information on to the WTA and the tournament organization until the next day. Additional security measures could not be taken in such a short time.

Emma Raducanu was stalked. © APA / CLIVE BRUNSKILL

Raducanu had hidden behind the referee's chair during the match. The man was banned from the stands. The referee and Muchova took care of Raducanu, who continued playing and lost the match. The police in Dubai later arrested the man. He signed a formal undertaking to distance himself from Raducanu. He was banned from future tournaments. The athlete dropped the charges against him.

stalking verdict 2022

The professional organization WTA then announced that the man would be banned from all WTA events until it was clear whether there was a threat. The spectator had previously shown "fixated behavior" towards Raducanu in a public area.

In 2022, a man was sentenced to community service, unpaid, for stalking Raducanu and was also banned from contacting her for five years. There was no further information about the identity of the man who was banned in Dubai.