Emma Raducanu was forced to retire due to illness midway through her first-round match at the Qatar Open. The event was the British No.1’s first match since losing the final of the Transylvannia Open to Sorana Cirstea last week.

Raducanu was taking on Camilla Osorio in the first-round match in Doha, but was forced to retire through illness in the early stages of the third set. Cirstea was leading 2-0 in the third and deciding set at the Qatar Open first-round match against Raducanu, with the British No.1 undergoing a blood pressure check from the physio on the court.

Raducanu had taken the first set 6-2 in convincing fashion, but lost the second 6-4, with Osorio going on to break serve in the opening game of the third set.

After taking a bathroom break before the start of the third set, Raducanu appeared to look tired and was broken by Osorio in the first game of the deciding set.

Osorio went on to hold serve in the second game to take a 2-0 lead, which led to Raducanu approaching the net to forfeit the match and exit the tournament at the first hurdle.

There is now a question mark over whether or not Raducanu, the world No.25, will feature at the Dubai Championship which gets underway next week.

Raducanu’s match against Osorio came just two days after her final defeat to Cirstea at the Transylvannia Open in Romania, where there were concerns about the 23-year-old’s health.

The 2021 US Open champion lost in straight sets to Cirstea, which would have been her first chance to win a WTA title since her victory across the Atlantic more than four years ago.

During the second set of that defeat in Romania, Raducanu underwent a blood pressure check after having the physio rushed onto the court to assess her health.

Raducanu went on to complete the match, but lost 6-0 6-2 and missed out on the chance to get another title under her belt.

It now remains to be seen if Raducanu will feature at the Dubai Championship next week or if the British No.1 will have a break from tournament action.