‘She can easily get there’ – Simona Halep backs Emma Raducanu to break top 10
Emma Raducanu leapt from 150th to 23rd in the world with her US Open triumph, and Simona Halep believes she will climb higher very soon.
Both women are competing at the WTA 250 Translyvania Open as their season begin to wind down.
Should both Halep and Raducanu reach the semi-finals, they would face each other for a spot in the final.
On the subject of Raducanu, Halep has joined much of the tennis world in praising the teenage star.
“What she achieved is unbelievable,” Halep said ahead of the Transylvania Open. “And it’s all credit to her because she played so well and she played so many matches.
“I think her mentality was very strong and also her game. She played great tennis, very fast, very close to the baseline and I think the movement also was great.
“She has already won a Grand Slam title and I think she is able to achieve everything. Now she has the experience of winning the biggest tournament in tennis.”
Remarkably, Raducanu has fewer wins on the WTA tour than she does at Slams. The 18-year-old reached the fourth round of Wimbledon and won the US Open, claiming 10 main draw victories across the two.
On the WTA tour, Raducanu has just four tour level victories, all coming at at WTA 125 tournament in Chicago in August.
“I think she can easily get into the top 10 sooner than everybody thinks because already she is close to that,” Halep continued.
“Yeah, she has a bright future and for sure, she will be one of the best players in the world.
“Even if she is so young I think she feels the pressure, it’s normal, everybody does. You guys should enjoy her tennis results.
“She is super nice and we just need to wait for her to grow up a little bit at this level because she just jumped up the rankings.
“She did something great and probably, it’s just my opinion, she will need some time to see how it is every week to be there. And then she will become stronger, much stronger.”
Raducanu takes on world number 124 Polona Hercog first in Romania, while Halep faces compatriot Elena-Gabriela Ruse in her opener.
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