Emma Raducanu has been backed by one of the biggest legends in tennis after her US Open exit at the hands of Elena Rybakina in the third round
Billie Jean King believes that Emma Raducanu will bounce back and shine after her disappointing US Open exit, where she claimed other players target her « big time ». The British No. 1 saw her major tournament hopes for 2025 end in heartbreak with a crushing 6-1, 6-2 defeat at the hands of Elena Rybakina.
The No. 9 seed demolished Raducanu in just 62 minutes to advance to the round of 16, while the Brit will depart New York to concentrate on next month’s Billie Jean King Cup Finals in China. And the namesake of said tournament, who is regarded as one of tennis’ biggest icons, is backing Raducanu to make her mark as she leads her country against Japan.
Disicussing Raducanu’s Chinese heritage – which she takes from her mother – King said: « I think it’s huge that you can speak the language of wherever you are. Raducanu is very articulate as well, she’s very good at getting up and speaking, covering a lot of subjects. You can tell she thinks about a lot of things compared to a lot of the players.
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« I think we’re really lucky to have her but she likes it, she likes playing for her country. If I were her, I’d be pretty excited. She’s playing very well, and the main thing is she’s injury-free, her body’s healthy again. »
Having the support of one of tennis’ biggest stars in her corner will no doubt be music to Raducanu’s ears as the Brit looks to regain momentum after her abrupt US Open exit on Friday. Speaking about her excitement for the upcoming tournament, the 22-year-old said: « I think you take a few steps forward, one step back, but I think overall I’m working and building towards good things.
« I’m just enjoying my tennis, for the most part. In the big scheme of things I’m working towards playing better and being a better tennis player, more complete overall and looking forward to going back to Asia.
« I’ve never really played an Asia swing, so I hope this year I’ll be able to. »
Raducanu will be joined in the team by Katie Boulter, Sonay Kartal and Jodie Burrage for what will be the start of the final part of the season in Asia. The Brits will face Japan in the quarter finals on September 18, and staying healthy will be Raducanu’s number one target, given her history with injury problems.
However, the world No. 36 is of the belief that when she plays against some of the top stars in tennis, they raise their game exponentially – but she takes it as a compliment. Raducanu added: « Yeah, big time. I think when the very top play against me, they have a point to prove that they’re at the top for a reason.
« Every time I’ve played one of them they’ve shown that. While I’m improving, doing better, gaining maybe some more respect, I think the top have definitely raised their game.
« But I’ll take that as a compliment that they’ve decided to really lock in against me, but at the same time it does show I have a lot more work to do. »
It seems that some do agree with Raducanu’s standpoint, as former British No. 1 Tim Henman stated that the young tennis star’s US Open exit was a « reality check » that she can carry forward.
Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: « We’re talking about her up against a top-10 player, one of the best players out there.
« There’s been a lot of positives this hard-court season but this was certainly a bit of a reality check. Difficult day but she’ll learn a lot from it. »
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