Emma Raducanu withdraws from Macau exhibition match

Raducanu was poised to return to action after her May surgeries but, on her 21st birthday, has decided to extend her time on the sidelines.

FILE PHOTO: Emma Raducanu of Britain shouts after winning against Moyuka Uchijima of Japan during their first-round match of the Korea Open tennis championships in Seoul, South Korea in 2022. | Photo Credit: Ahn Young-joon/ AP

Former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu has pulled out of a December exhibition match at the Macau Tennis Masters as she continues to recover from wrist and ankle surgery, her management company said on Monday.

Raducanu was poised to return to action after her May surgeries but, on her 21st birthday, has decided to extend her time on the sidelines.

The Briton, who won her maiden Grand Slam title in New York as an 18-year-old qualifier in 2021, has not played since April, missing the French Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open while plummeting to number 289 in the world rankings.

Raducanu started light training in August and said she is targeting a comeback for next season.

The inaugural Grand Slam of the year kicks off in Australia on January 15.