Emma Raducanu retires from longest match of WTA season with hip injury

By Matias Grez, CNN

Updated 1457 GMT (2257 HKT) February 23, 2022

Emma Raducanu hits a backhand during a match against Daria Sabille of Australia on day 2 of the AKRON WTA Zapopan Open 2022 on February 22, 2022.

(CNN)Emma Raducanu has been forced to retire from her first round match at the Guadalajara Open with a hip injury.

Trailing 5-7 7-6 4-3 to Australia's Daria Saville, Raducanu called an end to the match — which at three hours and 36 minutes was already the longest on the WTA Tour this season — soon after receiving treatment during a timeout.It was Raducanu's first competitive match since the Australian Open, where she lost in the second round to Danka Kovinic after suffering with blisters on her hand. Tuesday's retirement means the 19-year-old has won just three of her eight matches since her stunning 2021 US Open win.Can Emma Raducanu become sports' first billion dollar woman?World No. 12 Raducanu, the No. 1 seed in Guadalajara, had a chance to serve for the match at 5-3 in the second set, but Saville — ranked 610th in the world — broke back and went on to force a tie break, which she won 7-4.Read MoreIt was Saville's first WTA main draw win since the 2021 Australian Open, the WTA said.Saville also appeared to be struggling with an injury in the second set, but fought back to earn one of the biggest wins of her career.