Marketa Vondrousova confirmed that she has gotten back to feeling healthy but also noted that she expects nothing but a tough match against Emma Raducanu in her Abu Dhabi opener.
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After the draw was released for the WTA 500 tournament in Abu Dhabi, it was revealed that two Grand Slam winners would meet in the first round.
For the 2023 Wimbledon champion, it will be only her second tournament of the year.
Previously, she retired injured in her Adelaide round-of-16 match and missed the Australian Open.
On the other side, Raducanu also dealt with some injury issues in early 2025 and she is only 2-2 after her first two tournaments played.
Vondrousova on facing Raducanu
Its tough but its nice to know who youre playing against first, the Czech tennis star said of her Abu Dhabi first-round matchup.
I expect a tough match. Shes a great player. I hope its going to be a good one.
I actually felt great in Australia in the first matches and then I got injured. I didnt play for a couple of weeks but now I feel good, Im healthy so I hope Im going to stay healthy and play good tennis.
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When the 2023 Wimbledon champion and the 2021 US Open winner meet, it will be their third meeting.
Their first meeting came during 2021 Wimbledon, when Raducanu beat the Czech in the second round en route to making the round-of-16 at The Championships in her Grand Slam main draw debut.
While the Briton ended victorious in their first clash that came on grass courts, Vondrousova enjoyed a much better day at the office when they met in the Billie Jean King Cup in 2022, dominating that match 6-1 6-1.
It should be noted that their BJK Cup match was played on clay.
So when Vondrousova and Raducanu square off for the third time, it will also be their first meeting on a hard surface.
