Emma Raducanu will return to action in Indian Wells after Dubai incident

Emma Raducanu will return to action next week at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells.

At the former US Open champion’s most recent tournament in Dubai last week, she was approached by a man displaying what the WTA described as “fixated behaviour” before her second-round defeat to Karolina Muchova. Raducanu was visibly distressed, hiding behind the umpire’s chair early in the contest after spotting the man in the first few rows of seats.

The 22-year-old, who had ended a four-match losing run in the first round, opted not to press charges after the man was detained but he has been banned from future tournaments.

Raducanu had been weighing up whether to take a longer break after returning home but has decided to play Indian Wells, one of the biggest tournaments of the year, as planned. According to reports, the world No 55, who has performed strongly in the Californian desert in the past, will be offered extra security.

Raducanu’s search for a new full-time coach goes on and she will be supported in Indian Wells by her fitness trainer Yutaka Nakamura and Tom Welsh. Welsh has formerly worked with Leylah Fernandez, the player Raducanu beat to win the US Open in 2021, and joined the National Academy at Loughborough three years ago. It is understood his involvement is limited solely to this one tournament.

Meanwhile, Alexander Zverev’s hopes of overtaking Jannik Sinner as the world No 1 were dealt a blow by a second-round loss to the teenager Learner Tien at the Mexican Open.

Learner Tien celebrates after defeating Alexander Zverev during the Mexican Open. Photograph: Eduardo Verdugo/AP

Zverev is best placed to take advantage of Sinner’s three-month doping ban, with the Italian not eligible to return to the tour until May. He is more than 3,000 points behind but the 500 available for the winner in Acapulco would have given him a solid boost. However, Zverev fell 3-6, 4-6 to the 19-year-old American Tien, who has built on his breakthrough run to the fourth round of the Australian Open last month.

Stomach problems took out the rest of the leading four players in Mexico, with the second seed, Casper Ruud, and third seed, Tommy Paul, both giving walkovers to their opponents, while the fourth seed, Holger Rune, withdrew trailing the American Brandon Nakashima 3-0.