'I feel really strong' – Raducanu insists fitness issues are over ahead of Nottingham Open

The 21-year-old has not played since the Madrid Open in April but will make her return this week in Nottingham, continuing her comeback from double wrist and ankle surgery in May 2023.

“It was important for me to take time to transition onto the grass because the balls over the grass season are heavy,” Raducanu said of her withdrawal from Roland-Garros.

She continued: “I feel like the conditions are just getting slower and slower on the grass courts. Especially for myself having had wrist surgeries, I just needed to prioritise the transition.

“I think wrists are always very delicate and I think especially with how the tour is right now, and the fact we have to change balls every single week pretty much, and they don’t regulate the ball.”

Raducanu called for an introduction to uniform tennis balls across the WTA Tour, claiming using different balls throughout the year increased the risk of injury.

“I’m not the only one with wrist issues,” she said. “I’m probably just the one who’s had them most publicly.

“So, I think for me it’s definitely a factor where I have to miss certain events because either the conditions or the balls just don’t favour my situation.

“And it is hard as they are trying to make the points longer and tennis more interesting. But I guess players do get the short end of the stick in that sense and hopefully something can be done about that.”

Raducanu played her first WTA match at the Nottingham Open in 2021, performing well enough to earn a wildcard for Wimbledon, where she reached the fourth round.

Just two months later, Raducanu made history by triumphing at the US Open, becoming the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam.

She has struggled with her form and fitness since, but it is hoped her surgeries last year have rectified this.

“Body-wise, physical-wise, I feel really healthy,” Raducanu said. “I feel really strong. I’ve done amazing work with my trainer over the last few months, since surgery.

“I’m in a really fit place. I think my wrists are actually in a better position than they ever were. So there’s zero doubt or apprehension.”

Raducanu was forced to use a mobility scooter while recovering from surgery, but she now uses the experience to appreciate her time on the court.

“I think it’s very easy for me to lose sight of where I was exactly a year ago because it is pretty much a year ago to this day, this month,” she said.

“You get so caught up in your own world that you want more and more and more.

“But a year ago I was on a scooter scooting around and I didn’t know – there was an element of doubt. To be healthy and to be here, I need to cherish it.”