Emma Raducanu was pictured all smiles for the first time since her stalker ordeal as she trained at Indian Wells ahead of her tournament return.
The British No 2 enjoyed a hit with tournament director and former Wimbledon semi-finalist Tommy Haas after flying in to the United States, where she is also likely to appear at the Miami Open.
Given that Raducanu had not been seen training at the National Tennis Centre in recent weeks, her relaxed demeanour will reassure fans that she has been able to put her security alert behind her.
There were warm smiles between Raducanu and Haas, the German-American former world No 2, as they put each other through their paces on the Indian Wells hardcourt.
Raducanu has committed herself to playing a full season in 2025 and Indian Wells – which sits near Palm Springs in the Californian desert – is the biggest regular tour stop outside the four majors.
The 22-year-old will have access to enhanced security at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden after her alarming experience in Dubai. While high-profile players would usually have one or two bodyguards with them while they move through the public areas of a tennis centre, Raducanu is reported to have been offered up to five extra staff members.
She may also have extra security support while off-site, which is where trouble arose in Dubai. In the days before her first match at that event, Raducanu was approached by the stalker while sitting on her own at a cafe outside the tennis centre.
According to Roman Kelecic, the locum coach who was present in Dubai: “That [the cafe approach] was the only moment in a month where I, the fitness coach, the security guard who was with us, was not with her at that moment.
“So, that man was assessing the situation and looking for the best moment to get closer to her. He had a strategy that was terrifying. He thought everything through, calculated it.”
Raducanu would later break down in tears during the early stages of her second-round match against Karolina Muchova.
The man was ejected from that match, and given a restraining order based on what Dubai police described as “fixated behaviour”. Last week, the authorities announced that Raducanu had dropped charges against the man, who is not a British national and is unconnected with the previous stalking case that Raducanu endured in 2022. Raducanu’s ranking of No 55 earned her direct entry into the main draw of Indian Wells this week.
