Emma Raducanu was set to play her first match of the year at the United Cup in Perth, but pulled out with hours to spare and was replaced by Katie Swan.
Emma Raducanu‘s 2026 season got off to a tough start as she pulled out of her first match of the year at the United Cup in Perth. The world No. 29 was set to face Naomi Osaka in Great Britain’s opening tie against Japan in the mixed-gender team competition.
The 23-year-old withdrew due to an undisclosed injury just hours before Sunday’s match, and was replaced by world No. 276 Katie Swan. However, team captain Tim Henman remains optimistic that she can still participate later in the tournament.
This is the second major setback for Team GB, following ATP No. 10 Jack Draper’s withdrawal from the tournament. Billy Harris took his place as the squad’s top male singles player.
The Brits are also scheduled to play Greece on Monday, where Henman hopes Raducanu will be fit to take on Maria Sakkari, whom she has a 4-0 record against.
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The reason behind Raducanu’s decision not to compete against Osaka remains unclear. However, the British No. 1 missed two exhibition matches in December due to light bone bruising in her right foot and chose to concentrate on a training block with coach Francisco Roig in Barcelona. She also fell ill at the end of the 2025 season in Asia.
Henman, who is serving as Britain’s captain at the United Cup, told Australian broadcaster Nine: “I got to be honest, she was very, very close.
“It was not an easy decision. She had been building up and practising really well. I don’t think she is necessarily out of this tournament just yet.”
In the opening match of the Britain vs Japan tie, Team GB secured a point when Billy Harris triumphed over Shintaro Mochizuki 7-6(4) 6-3.
However, Swan, who filled in for Raducanu in the women’s singles match, was defeated 7-6(4) 6-1 by former world No. 1 Osaka, with Raducanu cheering her on from the team bench.
Osaka managed to recover from a break down in the first set, winning it in a tiebreak before dominating the rest of the match.
“Honestly, I guess [I’m proud of] just fighting no matter what the score was. I’ve never played her before, and she’s a really tough opponent,” she said afterwards.
This left Britain and Japan level at 1-1 following the men’s and women’s singles matches, with the tie to be decided by a mixed doubles match. Both Britain and Japan are in Group E, alongside Greece.
Japan suffered a 3-0 loss to Greece on Friday, losing both singles matches and the mixed doubles. Osaka had been battling illness during her first match of the season against Sakkari, but rebounded to defeat Swan.
Raducanu will be hoping to follow suit if she makes her United Cup debut for GB on Monday after her recent setback
