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Emma Raducanu has now spent more than two months on the sidelines as a post-viral illness continues to force her out of competition. It appeared that the British No. 1 was about to return to the tour in Rome - she arrived on-site last weekend, practised multiple times, and completed pre-tournament media duties - but she withdrew on Tuesday evening, shortly after previewing the event in interviews.

Raducanu's last match came on March 8, when she suffered a bruising 6-1 6-1 defeat to Amanda Anisimova in Indian Wells. Since then, lingering symptoms from that illness mean she hasn't been able to compete. While Raducanu was ultimately unable to take to the court in Rome, she did provide an update on her fitness, and explained how the virus had affected her tennis.

"Post-viral, it's quite hard. You feel drained, you feel tired, no energy. It's difficult and it lingered for quite a while. Right now I wouldn't say I'm 100 per cent. I'm still building my way back," Raducanu told reporters less than an hour before she announced her withdrawal.

"It is difficult to then kind of maintain it, even if your tennis level is very high, it's difficult to maintain for the full duration of the match, so I think it was good to come here and practise and see how I'm doing in points and the sharpness of that is also another thing to just get your eye in for."

The world No. 30 first picked up an illness in February during her run to the Cluj final, and had her vitals taken during a straight-set defeat to Sorana Cirstea. She played her first-round match in Doha just two days later and retired in the third set, and then lost her opening match in Dubai the following week.

Raducanu then headed to Indian Wells, where she said that, with hindsight, she would have skipped the Middle East swing and taken time to recover. The 23-year-old has since missed four consecutive tournaments, but has still made progress in recent weeks, despite pulling out of the Italian Open.

She briefly reunited with Andrew Richardson - the coach who guided her to her 2021 US Open triumph - for a training block at the Ferrer Academy, and then came to Rome for some pre-tournament practice sessions.

"Last two months, in the beginning, it was quite difficult. Wasn't feeling the best physically. And I think it had just been lingering for a while. Whereas the last three weeks, I think I've really turned a corner and I feel so much better," she said in Rome.

"And that's a really positive thing for me. I feel great on the court. I feel like every day I'm working towards something. The break has helped me feel really motivated coming back, very hungry and happy to be out here training and putting out great sessions every day."

While Raducanu has had to further delay her comeback, she is already hoping to return at the WTA 500 event in Strasbourg, which begins on May 17 - around 11 weeks since her last match. The 23-year-old did not put herself on the initial entry list and will need a wildcard to get into the main draw. The French Open then gets underway on May 24.

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