Emma Raducanu thinks she will be one of the ‘best athletes’ after defeat to ‘ruthless’ Swiatek
Emma Raducanu has vowed to become one of the ‘best athletes’ on the WTA tour, after her defeat to No.1 Iga Swiatek.
Raducanu produced one of her best weeks since winning the US Open, back in 2021, reaching the fourth round of Indian Wells before losing to the Pole, 6-3 6-1.
The British No.1 picked up her two highest ranked wins since her triumph in New York, which came as a surprise to many after there were doubts she would even play the event due to injury and illness.
Raducanu has said that she is taking a ‘positive’ outlook on her time in the desert, “I can take a positive week.”
She continued, “I think I had a few good wins earlier against some great opponents. I did two good training weeks in London. They paid off to an extent, but ultimately, two weeks of training isn’t going to cut it against the world No. 1 right now.”
“I’m looking forward to playing her after I’ve got more time under my belt.”
Out of this world 🌎@EmmaRaducanu | #TennisParadise pic.twitter.com/5tn1NOLJcc
— BNP Paribas Open (@BNPPARIBASOPEN) March 15, 2023
The 20-year-old was adamant that she is going to continue the work that she did over the pre-season, to get herself in the best condition possible to compete with the likes of Swiatek.
“Physically, I feel like that’s going to be one of my biggest assets. I think that I’m going to be one of the best athletes on the tour, and that’s going to be a big part of my game,” claimed Raducanu. “I would say there is a very long way to go, but I’m definitely starting the right work now.”
The WTA No.77 also had a lot of praise for her three-time Grand Slam champion opponent, “I think that Iga played a very good level and showed why she is No. 1 in the world.”
“She was very ruthless with the way that she played. I think I was able to stay competitive for the beginning of the match, but ultimately she ground me down, and by the end of it, I was just taking way too long to recover from one rally.
Raducanu added, “Overall, I feel like physically she is much further ahead than I am at this moment.”
For Raducanu, she will now turn her attention to the second half of the sunshine double at the Miami Open, which begins next week, and Swiatek moves onto the Indian Wells quarter-final where she will play Sorana Cirstea.
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