Emma Raducanu's Citi Open conqueror in heartwarming scenes as celebrations interrupted

It wasn't to be for Emma Raducanu at the Citi Open, with the Brit beaten in the semi-final by Anna Kalinskaya. Raducanu lost in straight sets to her Russian opponent, who progressed into the final, where she'll meet Leylah Fernandez.

Despite the disappointment of losing in Washington D.C., Raducanu was at least treated to the impromptu visit of Kalinskaya's dog, which ran onto the court after the match. The dog, which is named Bella, burst onto the court and ran straight for Kalinskaya, who hoisted the dog into the air.

Much to the amusement of the crowd in the American capital, the pooch continued to look for cuddles before Kalinskaya passed Bella back to a member of her entourage. It was the second consecutive day Bella had made an appearance, given she'd also shown her face during Kalinskaya's victory against Clara Tauson in the previous round.

Bella has become somewhat of a cult hero at the hard-court event, with Kalinskaya's furry friend having even been given her own credentials. A social media post depicted a pass which grants Bella entry to matches as an official member of Kalinskaya's team.

Regardless, as far as Raducanu is concerned, it's a welcome return to form ahead of the final Grand Slam of the year. Commenting on her run to the last four, former tennis ace Barry Cowan told tennishead: "I think grass and fast hard courts are her best surfaces.

"I think the reason for that is that she is a great timer of a tennis ball. And when she won the US Open, she predominantly played her tennis on the baseline and used her great timing to hit the ball early and rush her opponents. Obviously, on the slower hard courts, on the clay courts, it's a totally different type of style that is required, but yeah, I mean, she can do well at the US Open, but I think that the women's tour is something where I do feel, you know, I look back to Washington last year as a good example. I thought she'd played a great in Washington."

He concluded: "She played two really good matches, she won, she built momentum, she lost narrowly to [Paula] Badosa in the quarter-finals, and then she didn't play after that until the US Open."