Emma Raducanu’s injury difficulties struck again as she retired from her Korea Open quarter-final against Daria Kasatkina. The 21-year-old Briton had just lost the first set 6-1 when she withdrew having struggled with a foot problem.
Raducanu had previously beaten two top-50 players in Seoul en route to the last eight; the American Peyton Stearns and China’s Yuan Yue. Looking to make only her second ever WTA Tour semi-final, having also reached the last four in Nottingham in June, the 2021 US Open champion initially saw her match against the world No 13 Kasatkina rained off on Friday.
When the contest finally got under way on Saturday, Raducanu – who spoke earlier this week of wanting to play as many matches as possible before the end of the season – was broken by her top-seeded Russian opponent in the second game.
She immediately broke back, but was unable to build on that and, after Kasatkina had wrapped up the set, Raducanu went over and shook her hand having decided that she could no longer continue because of a problem with her left foot.
The foot injury had also surfaced during Raducanu’s round of 16 clash with Yuan when she was able to continue after a medical timeout and went on to win 6-4 6-3. “I feel sorry for Emma. It’s a pity to get injured, especially in the deeper stages of the tournament,” Kasatkina said after the match. “I wish her a speedy recovery.”
Kasatkina took to the court again later on Saturday, playing twice due to rain washing out Friday’s play in Seoul. She beat fellow Russian and fourth seed Diana Shnaider 6-3 6-4 in the semis, as an exhausted Shnaider also struggled with an injury.
Shnaider, who beat Ukrainian fifth seed Marta Kostyuk in the quarter-finals hours earlier, took a medical timeout in the second set of the semi before losing three games in a row as Kasatkina progressed to the final, where she will meet Brazil’s Haddad Maia.
Haddad Maia, who brushed aside lucky loser Polina 6-2 6-1 in the last eight earlier in the day, defeated the elder Kudermetova sister and former French Open quarter-finalist Veronika 6-4 6-4 in the semis.