'Reborn' Raducanu seeks to revive his career after his return from injury

 Britain's Emma Raducanu said she feels "reborn" as the former US Open champion prepares to return to action at next week's Auckland Classic following ankle and wrist surgeries.

The 21-year-old missed much of 2023 after operations on both wrists and an ankle, but will return to Auckland with a protected qualification a year after leaving the tournament in tears after twisting her ankle during a second-round match.

“Yes, I feel reborn in a way. “I feel fresh, ready, happy and excited,” Raducanu told reporters this Saturday.

Raducanu is now ranked No. 298 in the world, having fallen from a career-high No. 10 in July 2022.

She missed out on a wild card to the Australian Open starting Jan. 14 and will have to take a similar path to her career at Flushing Meadows in 2021, when she became the first player in the Open Era to win a major after overcoming the classification.

She said she no longer felt overwhelmed by the expectations that followed her triumph in New York.

“Overall, I feel positive and lighter. I think for the two years after the US Open I felt maybe a little bit more weight on my shoulders, but now I feel completely fresh,” Raducanu said.

Raducanu has not made it past the second round of a Grand Slam since her Flushing Meadows triumph and has received her fair share of criticism, but said she was happy to be fit and ready to compete again.

"It's good not to have three casts," he added. “So just moving around and showering, (doing) everything that you really appreciate, being able to do your own hair, things like that.

"I'm happy to be playing again."

The Auckland Classic will begin this Monday.