Emma Raducanu appears to aim subtle dig at Judy Murray, after pulling out of mixed doubles with Andy Murray at Wimbledon - as 21-year-old reaches quarter-finals of the Washington Open

Emma Raducanu appeared to aim a subtle dig at Judy Murray via a post on her social media, after she ended Andy Murray's Wimbledon career by withdrawing from their mixed doubles match last month.

Raducanu cited right wrist soreness as the reason behind her withdrawal but Judy Murray labelled the young Brit's decision to not play as 'astonishing'.

She has since appeared to row back on her criticism of Raducanu and her team - and instead directed her ire at Wimbledon's organisers.

However, that hasn't stopped 21-year-old Raducanu from seemingly taking a subtle dig at the 64-year-old via a comment on her social media post. 

After reaching the quarter-finals of the Washington Open on Wednesday, Raducanu took to Instagram to celebrate the victory with a picture of herself at the event.

American tennis star Francis Tiafoe quickly commented 'Mixed...' with a series of 'shrugging emojis' and 'laughing emojis' accompanying the message. 

Raducanu then responded: 'Astonishing' with a 'laughing emoji' - making a clear reference to Judy Murray's comments. 

Raducanu's withdrawal came as desperately disappointing news to Andy Murray, as well as fans who queued for hours early morning in the hope of landing a No 1 Court ticket to see them. 

'Unfortunately I woke up with some stiffness in my right wrist this morning, so I have decided to make the very tough decision to withdraw from the mixed doubles tonight,' a statement from Raducanu said on Saturday, just after 2pm. 

'I'm disappointed as I was really looking forward to playing with Andy but got to take care.' 

Murray was said to be 'absolutely devastated' after his Wimbledon career was brought to an end.

The 37-year-old had been forced to bow out of the singles with a back injury to the heartbreak of British fans, before losing alongside his brother Jamie in the first round of the men's doubles, sparking a tearful post-match interview in which he admitted it was 'too tough' for him to continue playing.

He had hoped for some form of redemption by taking part in the mixed doubles with Raducanu - who previously said it was a 'dream' to partner up with him - before the shock announcement. 

Raducanu had surgery on her right wrist last year and one only has to look at Juan Martin del Potro, Dominic Thiem or — more parochially — Laura Robson for evidence of how persistent wrist problems can wreck a career.

No one appreciates better than Murray the importance of protecting one's body — or the fact that ruthlessness is not an optional trait for a career at the highest level.