Britain's Emma Raducanu is out of the Abu Dhabi Open after losing in straight sets to former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova in the first round.

The 21-year-old will play world No 84 Botic van de Zandschulp in his first match at the ATP 500 tournament on Tuesday evening. The Spaniard world No 3 fell to a shocking straight-set loss to the 29-year-old Dutchman in the second round of the 2024 US Open. In his only previous tournament this year, Alcaraz was beaten in four sets by Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open quarter-finals. Speaking ahead of his appearance in Rotterdam, Alcaraz explained how a cold disrupted his preparations for the event. "I spent a few days at home after Australia, but I got a cold," Alcaraz said. "I was struggling a little bit at home. I could only train for two days and then I had to rest until the cold got better. "But spending time at home, it doesn't matter if you are sick, it is always great, having your family there. It allows you to be fresh mentally, to travel again." Alcaraz wore a nasal strip during a practice session in Rotterdam on Sunday, which suggests he has not fully recovered from his illness. The four-time Grand Slam champion also wore a nasal strip during two of his matches at the 2024 ATP Finals in November — his previous indoor tournament — having struggled with a cold. After using the strip in his win over Andrey Rublev in Turin in November, Alcaraz said: "Today I was a different person. The band-aid helped me to open up and breathe a little better. "I know Nico [Jarry] wears that thing on his nose. It helped me a lot. I could breathe much better. It's something I'm going to wear more often." The World No 3 is the top seed in Rotterdam, while seventh-ranked Daniil Medvedev — a Rotterdam champion in 2023 — is the second seed. Alex de Minaur, Andrey Rublev, Holger Rune, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Arthur Fils and Hubert Hurkacz are the other seeded players. Jannik Sinner won the event in 2024, but he chose not to defend his title. If Alcaraz overcomes van de Zandschulp, he could face an in-form Felix Auger-Aliassime in the second round. Auger-Aliassime has already won two tournaments in 2025, including his sixth career indoor title in Montpellier last week. Alcaraz is seeking his maiden indoor hard-court title in Rotterdam as he is yet to reach a final at an indoor tournament.

Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova announces she will return to tennis in February following a 15-month break during which she gave birth to a son.

Former world No. 6 Gilles Simon joined the 2021 US Open winner's team in 2024, but Medvedev has not exactly taken his game to a new level since his arrival. The 28-year-old has not won any titles since May 2023 as he finished runner-up at last year's Australian Open - before Simon joined - and was also a finalist at the Indian Wells Open. After exiting the ATP Finals in the group stage in November, Sinner carried that poor form over to the season-opening Grand Slam in 2025 as he first needed five sets to beat world No. 418 Kasidit Samrej in the first round and then lost against 19-year-old American Learner Tien in the next round with the match also going the distance. Ahead of his return to action at the Rotterdam Open, Medvedev has made a tweak to his team as he has parted company with Frenchman Simon. "Gilles joined the team just under a year ago, in February 2024. It was a good experience but it didn't go as I would have hoped, especially in terms of results," the former world No. 1 said. He added: "There were many good things in our collaboration with Gilles, but we didn't win any titles, Slams or anything like that. I've certainly learned a lot about tennis and I'm sure that all this will help me in the future." Gilles Cervara remains Medvedev's main coach as the Frenchman has been part of his team since 2017, leading him to his maiden Grand Slam title at the 2021 US Open and the world No. 1 ranking. The Russian faces veteran Stan Wawrinka in the first round in Rotterdam, but he admits regaining confidence will be key to turning his form around. "It was a tough result in Australia," he told ATPTour.com. "In a way, it was a good match, but a tough result. I am just trying to look forward and bounce back, that is the only way. I have to try to gain some confidence to win some matches. "I am trying to get my game more competitive. It is not easy but I am working on a lot of things but I think my confidence is the most important. Confidence and the work you put in show in the most important moments of matches, and you try and put the reps in to have that belief in your body. "I am working on lots of areas. Let's take volleys. I am not the best at the net on Tour but I am capable sometimes of making some amazing volleys in important moments. One against Learner in Australia. "You work every day on aspects of your game and sometimes they work in matches and sometimes not. I feel I am in a good position. I had a very good pre-season and a great week before the Australian Open. I remain calm."

World No. 2 Zverev was beaten 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 by Jannik Sinner in last Sunday's men's singles final in Melbourne, failing to create a break point chance as his Italian rival dominated throughout. It was the third defeat in as many major finals for the German, who previously lost the 2020 US Open final to Dominic Thiem, and the 2024 French Open final to Carlos Alcaraz. Zverev's struggle to win a first Grand Slam title contrasts the fortunes of Alcaraz and Sinner, who are currently a combined 7-0 in major finals. The Spaniard and Italian, aged 21 and 23 respectively, have now won six of the last seven Grand Slam titles. Zverev is currently ranked second in the world - ahead of Alcaraz - and has won seven Masters 1000 titles, alongside an Olympic gold medal and two ATP Finals titles. However, speaking on his podcast Served, former world No 1 Roddick believes that the 27-year-old's success is being undervalued because of his lack of a Grand Slam title. "Imagine that you have a global conference in whatever you do, you are anywhere around the world and the best of the best of the best at what you do are in one place," he said. "You know you are good at something but all of a sudden you see people come and you think: 'I have never seen this person do this thing that well.' "Imagine you then winning that competition for two weeks and then losing to one person and people going that's a failure. "That's a weird place to be and that is kind of where Zverev is right now." Since Zverev's defeat, debate has raged as to whether the German's struggles to win a major are down to his style of play, a lack of self-belief – or both. However, Roddick – the 2003 US Open champion – believes that it would be difficult for Zverev to change too much in terms of how he plays during a match. Roddick added: "He is professional, he is always fit, he does all the things that you would want a top player to do. "I think swing production is a bit more difficult for him than other people and people don't understand that dictates the style of play. “I wanted him to just go for it but he is hitting first serves big, he is hitting second serves big. How else can he just go for it without compromising the meat and potatoes of what makes him effective?”

Danielle Collins, who told jeering fans that she would spend her Australian Open prize money on a luxury holiday, posts a video from the Bahamas.

Simona Halep has admitted that retirement "goes through my mind very often" as her recent injury woes are starting to take its toll. Since being cleared to return to professional tennis in February 2024 following her successful appeal against her doping ban, Halep has played only two WTA Tour-level matches. The first was an opening-round defeat at the Miami Open last March and the second was at the Hong Kong Tennis Open in October. The two-time Grand Slam winner started the 2025 season outside the top 800 in the WTA Rankings, but was handed a wildcard for the qualifiers at the Australian Open. She later withdrew from the qualifying tournament as she struggled with knee and shoulder injuries. Having played so little over the past few years – she didn't feature on the WTA Tour at all in 2023 due to her ban for testing positive for roxadustat at the 2022 US Open – Halep admits retirement might not be too far off. Simona Halep has admitted that retirement "goes through my mind very often" as her recent injury woes are starting to take its toll. Since being cleared to return to professional tennis in February 2024 following her successful appeal against her doping ban, Halep has played only two WTA Tour-level matches. The first was an opening-round defeat at the Miami Open last March and the second was at the Hong Kong Tennis Open in October. The two-time Grand Slam winner started the 2025 season outside the top 800 in the WTA Rankings, but was handed a wildcard for the qualifiers at the Australian Open. She later withdrew from the qualifying tournament as she struggled with knee and shoulder injuries. Having played so little over the past few years - she didn't feature on the WTA Tour at all in 2023 due to her ban for testing positive for roxadustat at the 2022 US Open - Halep admits retirement might not be too far off. "Everything I have done in tennis has been extraordinary, I have worked for it and I feel like a very fulfilled tennis player. I would like to do something else, not just tennis." Despite her recent struggles, Halep has achieved what most can only dream of as she peaked at No 1 in the rankings, won the French Open in 2017 and Wimbledon in 2018 while she also has three Grand Slam runners-up trophies to her name. The 33-year-old, who has won 24 career singles titles, is happy with her achievements. But her knee injury might just force to head into retirement sooner than she expected. The Romanian added: "My knee is still giving me a headache because it's a cartilage tear and it's not easy to manage. At the moment it doesn't hurt, but I haven't had any official matches either. That's the problem." There is good news for Halep fans as she will make her 2025 debut at her home event, the Transylvania Open, next week after being handed a wildcard. The will face Italian Lucia Bronzetti in the first round with the likes of Anastasia Potapova, Olga Danilovic and Peyton Stearns also in the main draw.

The tennis great was initially troubled by injury early during his Australian Open quarter-final match against Carlos Alcaraz as he required medical treatment and then returned to court with a heavily strapped left thigh, but won the match in four sets. With the injury more serious than initially thought, Djokovic opted to skip training ahead of the semi-final in order not to put too much strain on his leg. Some questioned the seriousness of the injury as they suggested he was playing mind games, but the former world No 1 lasted only one set against Alexander Zverev before retiring. After the match, the 37-year-old took aim at those who claimed he was faking the injury as he shared an MRI scan of his injury as it revealed a hamstring tear. "Thought I'd leave this here for all the sports injury "experts" out there," he wrote on social media. There were claims that it would take Djokovic several months to recover and he would only return to action during the clay-court season in April. "Djokovic, with daily therapies and treatments, has repaired the injury and we will see him on the Tour in two weeks, that is, at the tournament in Doha that he registered earlier," the website stated. "The all-time best tennis player in the world received the green light from the doctor and in the next few days he will start training lightly and will be ready for all the challenges in Qatar. "The good news was that Nole's rupture was not as serious as the one from two years ago, so it took less time to repair it." Djokovic suffered a similar hamstring injury during his 2023 Australian Open title run, but also made a miracle recovery and was back in action at the Dubai Tennis Championships within a couple of weeks. The Sportal report adds: "Full recovery often occurs in a period of four to eight weeks, depending on the severity of the injury. "However, Novak is a special story. In the past, the Serbian tennis player has recovered much faster than expected. That was the case this time as well. Fortunately." The Qatar Open runs from 17-22 February and Djokovic remains on the entry list along with Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev. "Djokovic, with daily therapies and treatments, has repaired the injury and we will see him on the Tour in two weeks, that is, at the tournament in Doha that he registered earlier," the website stated. "The all-time best tennis player in the world received the green light from the doctor and in the next few days he will start training lightly and will be ready for all the challenges in Qatar. "The good news was that Nole's rupture was not as serious as the one from two years ago, so it took less time to repair it." Djokovic suffered a similar hamstring injury during his 2023 Australian Open title run, but also made a miracle recovery and was back in action at the Dubai Tennis Championships within a couple of weeks. The Sportal report adds: "Full recovery often occurs in a period of four to eight weeks, depending on the severity of the injury. "However, Novak is a special story. In the past, the Serbian tennis player has recovered much faster than expected. That was the case this time as well. Fortunately." The Qatar Open runs from 17-22 February and Djokovic remains on the entry list along with Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev.

The world No 56 was initially set to play in a qualifying event for the first time since her astonishing title run at the 2021 US Open when she became the first-ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam as she won 10 matches in a row in New York without dropping a set. Raducanu had accepted a qualifying wildcard for the WTA 500 event in Doha as her ranking was not high enough for direct entry into the main draw. But just hours before her first-round opponent was due to be revealed, organisers confirmed that her qualifying wildcard has been upgraded to a main draw wildcard. She joins 2020 Olympic champion and former Doha champion Belinda Bencic, 2023 Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova, former world No 4 Caroline Garcia and rising American star Ashlyn Krueger on the list of players to receive wildcards. The Abu Dhabi Open is the 22-year-old second tournament since her third-round exit from the Australian Open. Last week she competed in the Singapore Tennis Open, but suffered a disappointing first-round 5-7, 7-5, 7-5 defeat to Cristina Bucsa. That was her first event since it was confirmed that Nick Cavaday had stepped down as her coach due to health issues. Despite the disappointment of losing early, Raducanu saw her glass as half full after the match stating: "I have the positives [from] this week, coming here on my own with Yutaka [Nakamura, fitness coach] and my mum, but I'm really proud of how I dealt and handled myself this week. "I feel okay. I feel like I have certain things we all manage as the year goes on. I think it's pretty early in the season. "For me to be playing this kind of match, all I need is time on court and a match-competitive situation, which I got. I got it in abundance – over three hours of it – so, for me, it's really valuable because every match I play, I feel like it's a win. "And I fought really hard. I gave everything. So I just got to keep building and moving on." Raducanu was also handed a wildcard for the 2024 Abu Dhabi Open, but lost in the second round against Ons Jabeur. The 2025 event also features defending champion and top seed Elena Rybakina, world No 10 Paula Badosa, Jabeur and Daria Kasatkina. The Doha tournament is followed by two WTA 1000 events – the Qatar Open and Abu Dhabi Tennis Championships – but Raducanu will once again either have to come through qualifying or hope for a wildcard as her ranking is still not good enough for a direct entry.

Djokovic sustained the left leg injury early in his pulsating four-set quarter-final win over Carlos Alcaraz at the 2025 Australian Open. The Serbian had his thigh strapped during a medical timeout in the first set and revealed after the match he had taken two doses of medication to help him play through the pain. Late in the opening set and for much of the second set, Djokovic's movement was hampered and he grimaced with discomfort. The 37-year-old adopted an ultra-aggressive approach to win the second set, and his movement and level improved as the match progressed, allowing him to seal a stunning victory. Djokovic was forced to retire due to the same injury after losing a lengthy opening set in his semi-final clash with Alexander Zverev on a tiebreak. Following his unfortunate exit in Melbourne, Djokovic shared an image of an MRI scan confirming a hamstring tear in his left leg as he called out those who doubted his injury. "Thought I'd leave this here for all the sports injury "experts" out there," the 24-time Grand Slam winner wrote on X. Speaking on the Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, Stubbs predicted how long it will take Djokovic to recover from his injury. "He showed the scan, the tear in his hamstring," the former doubles world No 1 said. "That's a nightmare. That is minimally six weeks, minimally. I would say two months, minimally. Well then again, he'll get in his hyperbaric chamber maybe." Andrea Petkovic was also worried by the MRI scan, but she highlighted Djokovic's unique recovery capabilities. "Honestly, I had unfortunately a lot of MRI pictures to look at and when you can see it that obviously that much liquid in the thing… I am not a medical person at all," the former world No 9 replied. "But I know, I have seen enough of them that when you have a big white blot that is this big, you are f***ed basically. "The thing is, Novak, he is getting older, but he is different in terms of recovery. "I always say that, and this is really important, if you start to do all these things Novak does tomorrow, you are not going to get the same effects. "But since he was 17, he has been drinking green juices and doing yoga and doing his breathing exercises and meditation. But he has been doing this for 20 years. That's why his body is in the shape that he can even play like this."

Scheduling on the WTA has become a hot talking point in recent months with several high-profile stars – including Swiatek and Elena Rybakina – critical of the number of 'mandatory' tournaments for players. The WTA's top players are expected to compete at all four Grand Slam tournaments, all 10 WTA 1000-level events, and then a further six WTA 500 events following new rules introduced in 2024. Swiatek has been an outspoken critic of the requirements, and at one point claimed players struggled to "live peacefully" amid the hectic schedule. "It would be easy to fix for people who are in charge," said Swiatek, ahead of the 2024 US Open. "But they already made plenty of decisions and they promised so many things to tournaments. "I mean, WTA, for example, that it would mean for them to change their mind, which is tricky because it's business. "But I think players are aware that this is crazy what's going on and the schedule is really tough. "I spoke about it in Cincinnati, for example, and there are people saying that I don't have to play so many tournaments. "But truth to the fact is that we have so many mandatory tournaments that we literally need to show up and we don't have time to work on stuff or live peacefully because from one tournament we're going straight to another." Swiatek's remarks have attracted some criticism, but a significant number of players have expressed similar sentiments. Among the latest to do so is World No 33 Potapova, who is currently in action at the Linz Open – a WTA 500-level event. It is already the third tournament of 2025 for the Russian, who reached the round of 16 at the Brisbane International before a second-round defeat at the Australian Open. Speaking amid her campaign in Linz, the 23-year-old claimed tennis players played "way too much", and said it was "difficult" for her team to organise an appropriate schedule. "We play way too much, even if you compare it to other sports," said Potapova. "We play non-stop, week after week. If you stay at home five days in two months, it's really good. "The tight schedule and logistics involved are not great. In one week you can play in Dubai, then in Europe, Asia, and Australia. It's difficult, but I have a team that builds my schedule so that I don't die from overload. "There is not much time to rest, but I must emphasize that it would be a sin to complain about such a life."

World No. 3 Alcaraz was beaten 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 by Novak Djokovic in Melbourne, pushing back his quest to complete the Career Grand Slam until at least 2026. Djokovic was struggling physically during the match and, despite his win, eventually retired due to a hamstring injury in his semi-final versus Alexander Zverev. In the aftermath of his defeat, Alcaraz was criticised by some for failing to take advantage of his opponent's obvious struggles. The latest to do so is Italian tennis great Paolo Bertolucci, speaking on Sky Sports Italia. Bertolucci, a former world No 12 and a Davis Cup champion, claimed that Alcaraz should have won the match – and was lacking the mental toughness of his idol Nadal. "Alcaraz is sleeveless like Nadal, he plays differently, but he is a thousand miles away from Rafa in his head," said Bertolucci. "He should have gone 2-1 in the match with Nole and probably would have brought the match home." Adding to Bertolucci's criticism of Alcaraz was Adriano Panatta. The former world No 4 and 1976 French Open champion said that Alcaraz "must be at a level" where he can no longer lose to Djokovic at Grand Slam level. "Mentally he [Djokovic] crushes anyone, the other one took the bait with all his boots," added Panatta. "Novak is a great champion, phenomenal, nice or unpleasant, it's subjective. "But even a set tied, with Djokovic, he can no longer lose. He can no longer afford to lose against Novak. He was defeated in Paris two out of three but it was something special, a final on clay at the Olympics. "Three out of five, Alcaraz must be at a level that he should no longer be beaten by Nole." Alcaraz has won both of his Grand Slam finals against Djokovic, beating the Serbian in back-to-back Wimbledon finals in 2023 and 2024. Djokovic got the better of the Spaniard at the French Open in 2023 and now their most recent meeting in Melbourne, meaning they hold two wins apiece in their head-to-head at majors. However, Djokovic now holds a 5-3 advantage in their rivalry, having triumphed in both their Olympic gold medal match and their Australian Open contest following Alcaraz's SW19 triumph last July. Alcaraz was looking to become the youngest man in tennis history to complete the Career Grand Slam in Melbourne, though is still yet to make it past the quarter-final stage at the Australian Open. The four-time Grand Slam champion would still become the youngest-ever player to win all four majors should he triumph in 2026 or 2027.

Leon Smith says Britain's Davis Cup qualifying tie against Japan is a "great opportunity" for others in the absence of Jack Draper and Cameron Norrie.

Emma Raducanu will play in a qualifying draw for the first time since her fairytale run to the 2021 US Open title.