Emma Raducanu admits she ‘would have preferred to play more’ after US Open defeat
Emma Raducanu admitted to feeling ‘down’ after losing in the first round of the US Open, with the Brit tearful in her post-match press conference.
Raducanu was beaten by former Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin, 6-1 3-6 6-4, in her first match at the US Open in two years after missing the tournament last year through injury.
The 2021 champion was asked about how she felt when speaking to media after the match, seemingly talking through tears in an emotional response, “I feel down, I feel sad. Obviously, this is a tournament I really want to do well in so… after the first set I was outplayed completely and I think I did well to equal it.
“The third set was pretty high-level tennis and I think certain parts of my game in dealing with her speed of shot, dealing with her pace, certain parts I actually executed better than in previous matches. I came across a very in-form opponent, and she played really well.”
There has been some criticism for Raducanu in recent weeks, with the 21-year-old playing only one tournament in Washington D.C. leading into the New York major.
And Raducanu admitted that she may alter her schedule in future years after the disappointing result in New York, “I was maybe a bit slow starting. Yeah, I would have preferred to probably play, a little bit more before coming into the US Open.
“You know, I know when I have a lot of matches, just like every player,you feel really good. You feel like everything’s automatic. So yeah, I think I can learn from it. And you know my manage my schedule slightly differently.”
Raducanu was continuing her reflective mood after the match, vowing to better herself for the remainder of 2024, despite the Grand Slam season now over for the World No.72.
“I’m just going to go back to the drawing board and train and analyse where I went wrong and try and improve for the rest of the season,” said Raducanu. “Obviously the Slams are over for this year, but it’s not actually that long until Australia comes around again.”
🗣️ “I feel sad. This is a tournament I really want to do well in”
Emma Raducanu was reduced to tears after losing in the #USOpen first round to Sofia Kenin.
Read @stu_fraser‘s report from New York: https://t.co/kvzjyE2p10 pic.twitter.com/UPNFrb8HzW
— Times Sport (@TimesSport) August 28, 2024
Raducanu’s full upcoming schedule is currently unclear, but it appears that she is likely to commit to the Asian swing after being announced for tournaments in Seoul and Hong Kong.
Inside the baseline…
It is understandably a very disappointing result for Emma Raducanu, who is still yet to win a match at the US Open since winning the title three years ago. Sofia Kenin has not had a good season, but everyone knows the level that she can show when playing at her best and that was what she did against Raducanu last night. Despite the disappointment, it has still been a fairly positive year for Raducanu both results wise and physically, and hopefully she can get a decent quantity of matches for the remainder of the season.
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