‘Looking forward to home support’ - Emma Raducanu excited for grass season after French Open exit
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Published 25/05/2022 at 13:53 GMT
Emma Raducanu says she is expecting home support to spur her on during the grass court swing through to Wimbledon after losing to Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the second round of the French Open. The British no.1 will likely play on Centre Court as one of the favourites for the tournament after making her breakthrough at the All England Club last summer.
'Before I would let losses affect me' - Raducanu says her mentality is improving
Emma Raducanu says she is excited about home support moving up another level at Wimbledon compared to last year, as she turned her attention to the grass court season following a second round defeat at the French Open.
The British no.1 was beaten in three sets by Aliaksandra Sasnovich to bring her clay swing to a close at Roland Garros.
Raducanu made her breakthrough to a mainstream audience at the All England Club last summer, but she will be returning there next month as a US Open champion.
“It’s going to be really nice to go home and play on home turf, on the home grass,” she said.
“It is going to be a little bit strange in the beginning, because I have played on clay court for so long now, I feel like it's been weeks. Going onto a grass court I'm probably going to be a bit shocked at first.
“I'm really looking forward to playing in front of the fans at home, and just all the support. Last year I experienced a little taste of it, but I feel like this year might be a bit more. I'm just really looking forward to the atmosphere that's going to be around.”
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'Too good' - Raducanu bows out in second round as Sasnovich progresses in Paris
Raducanu has already committed to playing at the Birmingham Classic, starting on June 11, to warm-up for Wimbledon - but it is not clear yet whether she will add Nottingham or Eastbourne to her schedule.
Still without a coach, the teenager is happy with how she has dealt with the past few weeks and did not commit to changing anything ahead of Wimbledon, while also saying progression in her game - rather than results - are her main focus.
Although Raducanu has only seriously been in the public consciousness since reaching the last-16 at Wimbledon, she says her exit in Paris brings an invaluable 12 months of change to a close.
“It's pretty much a year anniversary since my comeback to competitive tennis. I was playing a Brit tour in Connaught - I think I have come a long way since then,” she said.
I really welcome going around the second time. I think this year was always going to be challenging for me to adjust, find my feet.
“There's always something new. I'm always asking where everything is. I have no idea where everything is. It's going to be a lot more familiar this time around.
“I feel in the last 12 months, I have definitely grown a lot. On and off the court I feel like I have probably improved - like how much I fight.
“I think that's one of my biggest strengths and even more so on the tour this year, and it's definitely opened my eyes to just how good everyone is and how much depth there is in the game. I think that the amount of learning that I have done outweighs any sort of result, to be honest.”
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