Emma Raducanu has revealed what she was told by her stalker before being targeted during a match in Dubai last month.
During Raducanu's second round match against Karolina Muchova at the Dubai Tennis Championships, play was briefly stopped by the match umpire.
The Brit hid behind the umpire's chair, with the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) later confirming in a statement that a man had 'exhibited fixated behaviour' - a phrase used to describe obsessive, unhealthy and unwanted behaviour - towards Raducanu and had been ejected from the stands by security.
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The statement added that the man would be banned from all future WTA events pending an investigation. He has since been handed a restraining order by Dubai police.
Raducanu had been followed to four tournaments by the man, who approached her, gave her a letter and took her photo before her match against Muchova.
The 2021 US Open champion reported the matter to a member of her team but the information was not given to the WTA or tournament directors.
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Dubai police had originally detained the man, but Raducanu decided not to press charges against him. He signed what police described as a 'formal undertaking to maintain distance from her'.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday morning, the Brit opened up on the ordeal for the first time and revealed exactly what the man said to her on one occasion before the match.
"There were two instances," she revealed. "And it was the second one that I just got freaked out by.
"The first one was more like a normal fan approaching you, except for the fact he told me he followed me everywhere.
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"And then [he] kind of watched me in the coffee shop for a while... the second incident was really worrying."
On the stalking incident in the match itself, Raducanu added: "I saw him in the first game of the match. And I was like, 'I don't know how I'm going to finish'.
"I literally couldn't see the ball through tears - I could barely breathe. I was like, 'I need to just take a breather'."
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The 22-year-old lost the match 6-7, 4-6 to world number 15 Muchova, who eventually reached the semi-finals.
Raducanu is back in action in the first round of the Indian Wells tournament on Thursday. She takes on world number 52 Moyuka Uchijima.
Fellow Brit Katie Boulter, who has a bye through round one of the same competition, told BBC Sport that she messaged Raducanu after the stalking incident, adding: "She's such a great young woman, and to see her go through something like that isn't nice.
"She's a strong lady and she'll get through it, but it's a very uncomfortable feeling to go through something like that and it can make you feel quite insecure."
Topics: Emma Raducanu, Tennis
Ryan Smart