Emma Raducanu is ‘going to be top 10 player’ claims 18-time Grand Slam champion
Emma Raducanu had her best tournament since winning the US Open last week, and 18-time major winner Chris Evert believes that the British No.1 is back on the rise after a difficult 2022.
Raducanu became the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam title in 2021, but struggled to recreate the same success last year with injuries hampering her progress.
The 20-year-old won three consecutive matches for only the second time since winning the US Open in Indian Wells, beating two top 20 seeds in the process before falling to the WTA No.1 Iga Swiatek.
Chris Evert has revealed how pleased she is to see Raducanu finding some form again, “I am very happy to see Emma doing well. She had a tough go after she won the US Open and I don’t think she really knew what hit her after a while.”
Evert continued, “Everybody was really gunning for her and she played scared a little bit. I liked how aggressive and bold she was at Indian Wells. She was hitting out on the ball and not afraid to go for her shot. She was really going for her shots and matching the power of some very powerful players.”
“I think there’s been enough time since the US Open where she can take a deep breath now and say, ’okay, that was then, this is now, and this is what I need to do and not be emotional about it’ and not let the pressure get to her. Now she’s starting from down here, and she has only one place to go, and that’s up.”
Understandably injuries are still a topic of conversation surrounding Raducanu, with the Brit having both wrists taped, but she has described her fitness concerns as ‘manageable’.
Evert believes this could be a ‘worry’ for the future, but thinks Raducanu’s mentality will be the most important thing, “She’s got a good physique. She’s athletic, she’s balanced, but she has had injuries, which you worry about.”
“She’s injury prone a little bit, but I think deep down, she will find that mental toughness that she had at the US Open. People didn’t realise she really didn’t beat any top, top players there. But I think the mental part and the physical part go hand in hand.”
Evert added, “I think the mental part is just as important, if not more important, than the physical part. I think I see a little more determination in her eyes, and I know she’s not a flash in the pan.”
Despite breaking into the top 10 last year, Raducanu is still yet to beat a top 10 player herself.
However, Evert believes that she will make her way back up the rankings to join the likes of Coco Gauff, who Raducanu lost to in the second round of the Australian Open.
“I think she is here to stay and here to compete with Coco and the top players. She’s definitely going to be a top 10 player,” claimed Evert.
Raducanu will look to continue her form when she plays fellow US Open champion Bianca Andreescu in the first round of the Miami Open, in a match that Evert thinks will be ‘fireworks’.
🎸🥁🐬miami O👋 pic.twitter.com/12ddSLrFXE
— Emma Raducanu (@EmmaRaducanu) March 19, 2023
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