Dubai – Tennis star Emma Raducanu, 22, recently shared a deeply emotional account of a traumatic incident at a tournament in Dubai that left her in distress and caused a brief interruption to her match. Raducanu, who was facing Czech player Karolina Muchova, broke down in tears after recognizing a stalker in the stands.
“I was obviously very desperate. I saw him in the first game of the match and thought, I don’t know how I’m going to finish this. I literally couldn’t see the ball because of all the tears. I could hardly breathe,” Raducanu explained before her upcoming tournament in Indian Wells.
The stalking incident began when the fan first approached Raducanu in a café in Dubai. The fan, claiming to follow her everywhere, lingered around the café, alarming the young tennis player. Raducanu revealed that he later left her a message and took photos, heightening her discomfort.
During the match, when the score was 0:2, Raducanu felt increasingly uneasy upon recognizing the stalker in the stands. Her fear became evident as she crouched behind the umpire’s chair. “The first four service games just passed me by. I wasn’t really on the court,” she said.
The authorities quickly intervened, arresting the man who had shown “fixated behavior” towards Raducanu. He was banned from future tournaments and signed an agreement to stay away from her. Although the incident was disturbing, Raducanu decided to drop the charges against him.
Reflecting on the emotional toll, Raducanu shared that her tears after the match were not only due to the loss but also from the overwhelming emotional strain. “It was a very emotional time,” she said. “I was just so upset in the last few weeks of events and I just needed a week off to breathe.”
Despite the traumatic experience, Raducanu is feeling much better and is preparing to play in Indian Wells, where she will face Japanese player Moyuka Uchijima in the first round. Should she win, she will meet third-seeded Coco Gauff in the next round.
Raducanu’s experience in Dubai was not her first encounter with a stalker. In 2022, another man was sentenced to community service and banned from contacting her for five years after a similar incident.
