Emma Raducanu is back on the biggest stage again, and this time the test comes on Sunday in Paris. The 23-year-old opens her French Open campaign against Argentina's Solana Sierra, with the first-round match arriving after a two-and-a-half-month spell out of the game with a post-viral illness.
Raducanu's return has been cautious and uneven, but she now believes the worst of the illness is behind her. After her second match since March in Strasbourg this week, a close defeat to Diane Parry, she said she feels a lot better and that physically she recovered well after spending more than two hours on court. She also said she had a lingering cough after thinking she had completely got over the illness, but added that she felt really good health-wise.
That matters because match sharpness is the one thing Raducanu does not have in abundance. She has played only two matches since March, and the layoff forced her out of the top 32, leaving her unseeded in Paris. The draw, at least on paper, was kind to her, avoiding the biggest names in the opening round. But the ranking damage means there is no protection now, only work to do from the first ball.
Sierra, 21, is ranked 64th and arrives with some belief of her own after a surprise run to the fourth round of Wimbledon last year. Raducanu said the opening match is going to be really tricky because she is coming in light on matches, and she made clear what the task requires: good tennis, aggression, and a fast start. The weather has added another layer, with lively practice conditions in the hot Paris air, something Raducanu said could be a good thing if she can use it to sharpen her game.
For Raducanu, the result in Strasbourg was less important than the hours it gave her. She described the outing as a really positive match in the sense that it lasted over two hours and her body responded well afterwards. That was the sort of evidence she needed before a major, even if the loss to Parry showed how much rhythm she still has to find. Her return had already been one to watch, including the decision to bring Andrew Richardson back for the Strasbourg clay swing, as reported in earlier coverage of her comeback after the illness break.
The rest of the British challenge is also taking shape in Paris. Cameron Norrie, the 20th seed, is dealing with a rib injury and said he has not been able to hit since arriving, though he is scheduled to play Paraguay's Adolfo Daniel Vallejo on Tuesday and hopes the rest will leave him ready. Jacob Fearnley and qualifier Toby Samuel are the other British men in the main draw, with Samuel set for a daunting first grand slam appearance against eighth seed Alex de Minaur. In the women's draw, Katie Boulter faces wild card Akasha Urhobo and Fran Jones meets Beatriz Haddad Maia.
Raducanu's road back has already brought one clear conclusion: she is healthy enough to compete, but not yet established enough to waste chances. Sunday will tell whether the body holds and the timing follows.
