(210706) -- LONDON, July 6, 2021 (Xinhua) -- Emma Raducanu of Britain reacts during the women's singles fourth round match between Emma Raducanu of Britain and Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia at Wimbledon tennis Championship in London, Britain, on July 5, 2021. (Xinhua/Han Yan)
The debate around Emma Raducanu is something that she would not want to focus on. After the defending champion lost in the first round of the US Open to Alize Cornet, the question doing the rounds in the tennis community is whether Emma Raducanu’s a one-hit wonder or not.
Emma Raducanu became a household name and broke plenty of records en route to her US Open triumph in 2021. She was playing just her second Grand Slam event. After progressing to the main draw from the qualifiers, Raducanu continued upsetting the veterans to eventually win the title without dropping a set.
The Bromley-based youngster was expected to dominate world tennis in the following months. However, the fairytale had run its race and the rub of the green evaded her. Since the 2021 US Open, Raducanu has not reached the semifinal stage at the 17 tournaments she has played in. Her best results have come at the Transylvania Open, the Stuttgart Open, and the Citi Open, where she made it to the quarterfinals.
At the 2022 US Open, she was defending 2000 points but the first-round exit means she will now slip from World No.11 to around No. 80.
Now that we have revisited what’s happened in Emma Raducanu’s career in the last 12 months, we can answer the big question.
Many fans have already given up hope just because she has had a bad year. Why is that so? Is she not trying hard enough? Certainly not. She recently brought in Dmitry Tursunov as her new coach trial ahead of the US Open. Tursunov has coached Elena Vesnina, Aryna Sabalenka, and Anett Kontaveit in the past.
Is Emma Raducanu too old? Certainly not. She is just 19 years old at the moment. She has a lot of time on her hands and she will learn things with her experiences. Sports isn’t a bed of roses. Raducanu is learning things the hard way and if she keeps her focus and motivation going, there’s always time for a comeback. Experts have acknowledged the quality of her possesses. All she needs is to address her demons and clear her head and fans will play a huge role in giving her support during this difficult learning phase. It’s in the toughest of times that people require support.
Maybe the pressure of being the defending US Open champion had put her under too much pressure. Now that won’t be bothering her anymore. We might see her best version soon.
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