Emma Raducanu improves Olympic prospects after Billie Jean King Cup squad announcement
Emma Raducanu has improved her chances of being selected for the Paris Olympic Games, after it was announced that she would be part of Great Britain’s Billie Jean King Cup squad in April.
Raducanu will be alongside Katie Boulter, Harriet Dart and Heather Watson, when Great Britain take on France next month in their qualifier tie on the indoor clay in Le Portel.
???????? The Lexus GB Billie Jean King Cup Team is IN ????????
Captain @annekeothavong's picks for the @BJKCup Qualifier vs France:
✅ @katiecboulter
✅ @harriet_dart
✅ @HeatherWatson92
✅ @EmmaRaducanu pic.twitter.com/S9MbTiZIlW— LTA (@the_LTA) March 15, 2024
This will be the second time that Raducanu has represented Great Britain during the current Olympic cycle, making her eligible for the Paris Games under the ITF’s rules.
The former world No.10 has previously admitted that she ‘would love’ to play her debut Olympic Games, but was not going to put any pressure on herself to do so.
Despite Raducanu becoming eligible for the Olympics, she may not be able to enter the Games based off her ranking, as she is currently only the seventh highest ranked Brit at No.250 in the world.
However, there are two reserved spots for former Olympic gold medallists/Grand Slam champions, of which Raducanu would be able to apply for due to her 2021 US Open success.
Great Britain will take on France in a rematch from last year between 12th and 13th April, with the winning team heading to the BJK Cup Finals in Seville at the end of the season.
Before then, Raducanu will look to build her ranking backup at the Miami Open next week, after receiving a wildcard for the WTA 1000 event.
???? pic.twitter.com/NheDjgdGMR
— Miami Open (@MiamiOpen) February 29, 2024
Inside the baseline…
The Olympic qualification criteria is a very complicated process, which does also have a lot of loopholes in as well. Regardless of this, it is great to see Emma Raducanu wanting to represent her nation on the clay in France. The 21-year-old will be a big boost to the team and it seems likely that captain Anne Keothavong would select Raducanu as the second singles player behind Katie Boulter, based off ability.
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