Tim Henman nonetheless believes Emma Raducanu’s recreation is transferring in the precise route regardless of her defeat to Sofia Kenin within the first spherical of the US Open.
Raducanu shocked the world three years in the past when she received the title in New York in simply her third senior match, nevertheless it has not been a contented searching floor since.
The 21-year-old fought again the tears earlier than admitting she was feeling unhappy as her watch for a primary win on the US Open since her memorable 2021 triumph goes on.
After a first-round exit in 2022 and lacking final yr by harm, 2020 Australian Open winner Kenin handed out extra distress with a 6-1 3-6 6-4 win on the Grandstand courtroom.
“After what she did three years ago, she’s always going to have incredible memories here for the rest of her life. But as a competitor and a player right now, she wants to compete and play well,” Henman advised Sky Sports activities Tennis.
“I do not assume she performed terribly however she was up in opposition to a world-class opponent who has beforehand gone the entire method in a Grand Slam.
“That is nonetheless all a part of a studying journey. She has mirrored now and stated, ‘I most likely got here in a little bit underdone’, having missed that chunk of Canada and Cincinnati.
“She perhaps will do things differently next time as, in hindsight, she probably should have gone through qualifying to get those match reps under her belt.
“I nonetheless assume her recreation is transferring in the precise route. It is definitely not the final we’ll see of Raducanu. Fingers-crossed she’s going to have many extra alternatives right here on the US Open sooner or later.
“It’s all a rebuilding process as she comes back from the surgeries [in 2023]. When she has played, she has played very well.”
Bartoli: Raducanu by no means regarded snug
Marion Bartoli, a former Wimbledon champion, was involved by Raducanu’s lack of presence on courtroom throughout the first set, saying it finally value her in opposition to a participant who loved taking part in on laborious courts.
“I felt that the first set for Emma went by in a flash, she was almost not present on the court,” stated the Frenchwoman.
“And then when you’re already one set down against someone who has been able to win a Grand Slam in the past, on a hard court and who loves these kinds of conditions, it’s such a difficult task.
“Kenin was consistently dashing Emma, consistently on the entrance foot, dictating a lot of the play from the again of the courtroom, particularly to disturb Emma, who by no means regarded snug on the market.”
Navratilova: She’s undercooked
Talking earlier than Raducanu’s first-round match in New York, tennis legend Martina Navratilova gave her ideas on the place the Briton is at in her profession.
“Because she didn’t play the Olympics, I would like to have seen her play more matches,” stated the 18-time Grand Slam girls’s singles champion.
“If I was her coach I would say, ‘please do play qualifying, if you qualify fine, but you also get a couple of matches under your belt and if you do qualify, even better’.
“I do really feel she’s a bit undercooked. In her profession she simply hasn’t performed that many matches, so I might encourage her to play extra matches.”
The place will Raducanu play subsequent and may you watch her on Sky Sports activities Tennis?
Raducanu is scheduled to play in Seoul in the course of September and is then more likely to play different occasions within the Far East – in Hong Kong and China, the place her mom was born.
All her matches within the Far East might be present reside on Sky Sports activities Tennis.
- Jasmin Open, Tunisia – WTA 250 (9-15 September)
- Guadalajara Open, Mexico – WTA 500 (9-15 September)
- Korea Open – WTA 500 (16 -22 September)
- Thailand Open – WTA 250 (16 -22 September)
- Chengdu Open, China – ATP 250 (18-24 September)
- Hangzhou Open, China – ATP 250 (18-24 September)
- China Open – WTA 1000 (Sept 25 – Oct 6)
- Japan Open – ATP 500 (Sept 25 – Oct 1)
- China Open – ATP 500 (Sept 26 – Oct 2)
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