Emma Raducanu fires back at ex-coach with optimistic comment after re-watching US Open win | Tennis | Sport
Emma Raducanu has revealed she feels a “different person” from the 18-year-old who won the US Open title a year ago. But after watching inspiring re-runs of her New York triumph, the British No 1 declared she is close to recapturing the same on-court “attitude” which shocked the tennis world.
The Bromley teenager became the first ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam at Flushing Meadows after arriving as the world No.150. The life of the A level student has since changed dramatically with Forbes this week listing her earnings at £17.87m through sponsorship from Tiffany, British Airways, Dior, Porsche and Nike.
Her tennis has been less profitable with injuries and form combining to see her win only 15 matches in 18 tournaments. Her learning curve has been steeper than the One World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan.
But Raducanu showed glimpses of her old New York form with victories over former world No.1s Serena Williams and Victoria Azarenka in Cincinnati. And the world No.11 said she had learned lessons from her run to the final – and her ruthless victory.
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“I’ve watched that match a lot of times and other matches from the tournament,” she said. “I think that when I’m watching that match I see my demeanour and my facial expressions and how I am. I think that honestly in the past year the only time I’ve come close to the same sort of attitude on the court was actually last week. I think I was extremely calm, I wasn’t being very expressive but I was super-focused and not shifting from that sort of mindset, and I think that really helped me in Cincinnati.
“In a lot of ways I do feel like a different person. A lot of stuff has happened. I’m probably not going to be the same 18-year-old that is just swinging, no one knows who she is, and it’s okay to not be because I’m maturing as a player and people know my game. It’s not the same but I’m not going to try and make it the same because you’ve got to start new.”
It comes after her former coach, Mark Petchey, insisted she needed a ‘shift in mindset’ after her run in Cincinnati. Part of her different world sees Raducanu admit time to herself “doesn’t exist”. She explained: “I am really really fortunate and have a lot of amazing opportunities that come my way but for sure that comes with a certain trade-off where you don’t have any time to switch off or be alone or do things that you want to do. You’re constantly on guard. But it also comes with what I’ve done, what I’ve achieved and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”
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So does she miss the person she used to be? “Yeah of course. There are moments in the year when I did lose that person and I got very caught up in certain things. But I’m still young at the end of the day. I’m 19, going on 20 at the end of the year. It’s just going to happen. Anyone is going through things at this sort of age. It’s all normal so I’m fine with that.”
Speaking in her birthplace of Toronto earlier this month, Raducanu revealed she was looking forward to a “clean slate” after the US Open and being able to “start again”. She plays her tricky first match against France’s Alize Cornet – who is making a record 63rd consecutive appearance in Majors – at midnight UK time on Tuesday.
“Whatever happens this week, it’s going to be like a fresh start, you’ve taken it, you close a chapter and you start a new one,” she said. “The only way is to look back at what worked, what didn’t work and take that forward as to what you’re going to use for the coming months, the coming years on the tour.”
