WTA bans spectator after Emma Raducanu's stalking complaint

DUBAI: A panic-stricken Emma Raducanu approached the chair umpire during her clash against Karolina Muchova late on a rain-marred Tuesday, sending shockwaves through the tournament. The 22-year-old Briton felt threatened by a fan who exhibited 'fixated behaviour' in the stands. Raducanu, ranked 61, entered the Dubai Duty Free tennis championship on a wildcard.

The Londoner - who worked her way from the qualifying competition to the US Open title to steal the thunder in New York four years ago - slipped behind the chair umpire's seat on Court Three and was comforted by her Czech Republic opponent.

The fan was subsequently ejected from the venue. The incident quickly became the talking point of the WTA 1000 event, not entirely surprising given that the sport has known a knife attack on tennis superstar Monica Seles more than 30 years ago in Hamburg when she was playing a match.

Major champions - Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina and young sensation Mirra Andreeva - however acknowledged that while there's the possibility of a fan overstepping, they felt safe at tournaments, given the level of security around them.

In a statement the WTA said, "On Monday, February 17, Emma Raducanu was approached in a public area by a man who exhibited fixated behaviour. This same individual was identified in the first few rows during Emma's match, he will be banned from all WTA events pending a threat assessment."

Andreeva, aged 17, ranked 14, who will go up against Swiatek in the quarterfinals on Thursday, said she has received hate-filled messages, but hasn't been troubled when on a tennis court.

"I remember when I was 14 years old, I was playing one of my first ITF tournaments and I received a message after my loss, (it said), look around, because I'm going to find you and cut your arms," the Russian teenager said.

Swiatek, the five-time major winner, said she and her team are vigilant about how and when they upload information on social media. "I try for my Instagram feed to be up-to-date, but sometimes we post one day after I leave some place," Swiatek said.

The tournament's sixth seed Elena Rybakina was all steel in her round-of-16 clash on Wednesday. She saved six match-points against the inform Spaniard Paula Badosa, seeded nine, to seal a stunning 4-6, 7-6 (8), 7-6 (2) win in a little under three hours.

In a shock result, world no.1 Aryna Sabalenka went down 3-6, 2-6 to the 38thranked Dane Clara Tauson.

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