Emma Raducanu refuses to represent Team GB and joins alternative tournament

Emma Raducanu will no longer represent Britain at the upcoming Billie Jean King Cup Finals, where team GB was due to take on Japan in the quarter-finals later this month. The British No. 1 was named in the squad earlier this summer.

But Raducanu has now opted to focus on her WTA singles schedule, and her progression with new coach Francisco Roig. The 22-year-old will now compete in the WTA 500 event in Seoul instead, accepting a wildcard into the tournament, which begins on September 15.

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Raducanu has previously enjoyed success at the Korea Open. She reached the semi-finals there in 2022 and made it to the quarter-finals last year before retiring mid-match with a foot injury.

The current world No. 36 has been making strides on the WTA Tour in recent months. She reached the semi-finals in Washington over the summer, and pushed world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in two hard-fought matches in Wimbledon and Cincinnati.

Raducanu suffered something of a setback when she was thrashed by No. 9 seed Elena Rybakina at the US Open. But the Brit is keen to continue adding to her WTA Tour schedule and earning ranking points instead of representing her country at the BJK Cup Finals.

The 2021 US Open champion was expected to be part of the British team alongside Katie Boulter, Sonay Kartal and Jodie Burrage. Any further additions or replacements to the team will be updated in due course.

Britain is through to the BJK Cup Finals - essentially the World Cup of women’s tennis - for the third time in the last four years. The Finals will be staged in Shenzhen from September 16 to 21.

GB’s quarter-final tie against Japan will take place on Thursday, September 18. The winning team will face either Kazakhstan or the United States in the semi-finals.

Raducanu also skipped Britain's qualifier ties against Germany and the Netherlands earlier this year. In her absence, Kartal won both of her singles rubbers, while Boulter and Burrage teamed up to win a decisive doubles match, giving GB a spot in the BJK Cup Finals.

The British No. 1 was part of the team when Britain reached the BJK Cup Finals last year. Raducanu won all three of her singles matches.

However, the team ultimately lost to Slovakia in the semi-finals as Boulter lost one singles rubber, while Olivia Nicholls and Heather Watson suffered defeat in doubles.

Britain will need a strong line-up to defeat Japan in two weeks’ time, as four-time Major winner Naomi Osaka was named in the Japanese squad earlier this summer.

The former world No. 1 is in form after reaching the Canadian Open final and following it up with a run to the US Open semi-finals - her best Grand Slam result in almost five years. Moyuka Uchijima, Ena Shibahara, Eri Hozumi and Shuko Aoyama are also in the Japanese team.

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