After an edition of absence, Emma Raducanu returns to Wimbledon, where she amazed the tennis world in 2021 by reaching the round of 16 in her first participation in a Grand Slam at the age of 18. Shortly after, she was proclaimed US Open champion without losing a set in ten matches, three in the qualifying round and seven in the main draw. The British were rubbing their hands at the possibility of having a new star, Andy Murray’s heir, but that success did not continue. The pressure of expectations, continuous changes in coach and some chain injuries made her disappear from the spotlight almost as quickly as she had reached the Top-10 (she was 10th in July 2022). Their balance from the final in New York to the Eastbourne quarterfinals this week is 37 wins and 36 losses, with no titles to add to their record and two semifinals as best results, the first in Seoul 2022 and the second, 15 days ago in Nottingham.
That green shoot, along with her qualification for the quarterfinals at Eastbourne this week, has revived the hopes of her compatriots and the women’s circuit, which has always welcomed the emergence of Raducanu (21 years old and 135th) as an exponent with which to improve its product. Somewhat more settled mentally than in her beginnings, Emma now refers to patience as a therapy for physical problems and also as a source of her improvement. At the media day of the London major she gave a rather curious example of methodology. “It’s always difficult. There’s no real way to improve. I think the most important thing is to have people on your team who really slow you down, because as an athlete you’re always going to push. When you go over the line, you want to do more, it’s very easy to get injured again and/or push yourself back. That’s something I learned, I need people who are really diligent. I had Milly (Milena Mirkovic, her physio), for example, counting every single shot I hit for two months. “We had a running countdown, and every day they were on it. I think that was exactly what I needed. Being patient and trying not to rush is the most important lesson I took,” said the Toronto-born tennis player, who met Spaniard Paula Badosa in her first training session.
In all this time, Raducanu has not failed in sponsors or media attention, despite his poor results. Because he has a certain charisma and also quality. In fact, the tournament granted him an invitation to the main draw and he scheduled his debut in the Central this Monday (around 4:00 p.m., Spanish time). She will have a difficult start against the Russian Ekaterina Alexandrova, 22nd seed. “I think it is a match in which I am actually the loser, because she is much older, she has much more experience, better ranking. But I think I have a great opportunity to try to get some good loot and try to enjoy playing like I have the last few weeks. There hasn’t been much time between Eastbourne (there she beat the Americans Stephens and Pegula, before losing to the Russian Kasatkina, the eventual champion) and here. I feel like I’m on a good streak,” says Emma.
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Another example of patience is given by Raducanu when asked about the opinion of her compatriot and former player Tim Henman, a television analyst who is watching her and Katie Boulter in the second week of Wimbledon: “If I get through my first round, I would be over the moon. Tim has higher expectations, I guess. Yeah, maybe Katie has a chance.” Nevertheless, she feels good: “I am very confident with my body. I was able to play three matches at a high level last week and come out physically unscathed. I think I am in a very good place. The preparation has gone very well, it is as if I were already in that second week.”
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2024-06-30 11:43:28
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