Emma Raducanu has arguably had one of the best years of her career thus far, yet it has been another harshly plagued by injuries.
It feels like the Brit has not gone through an entire season without suffering at least one outstanding physical setback, and this latest could be the toughest yet.
After all, it forced Raducanu to withdraw from Wimbledon on the eve of the event, cruelly so given she had just reached the final of Queen’s mere weeks before.
It seems that, no matter what the 23-year-old does, fitness issues continue to plague her.
This has prompted Greg Rusedski to offer his suggestion on how to possibly fix this unfortunate phenomenon.
Greg Rusedski’s crucial advice for Emma Raducanu
Speaking on his Off Court with Greg Rusedski podcast, the former British number one had some advice for Emma Raducanu which he felt could help her fix her longstanding fitness issues.
He began by insisting: “I want to see all our Brits healthy and progressing. But we also have to consider sports science because something is not right when we have so many constantly injured players. I don’t have enough information, but all I know is that we have many talented players in Great Britain, and we need to find a way to keep them healthy.”
Rusedski then offered Roger Federer as a shining example for her to follow: “I remember when Roger Federer was at the peak of his career, and he was still hitting tennis balls when he went on vacation with his family. That’s what you have to do.
“Team continuity helps, consistency in training. You can’t take long breaks. Even when you’re on vacation, you still need to hit balls. You still need to go to the gym. You need to keep it going because if you stop, you start from scratch.”
He did preface this by insisting he is no expert, adding: “I think you have to be part of the team to really know what the problem is. I am an amateur player now, but if I stop playing for a few weeks and then have a seniors’ tournament or something, my muscles ache. I feel stiff. I don’t recover as quickly. So, it’s easier for me if I train consistently. You need the same approach as the professionals. And you have to get that kind of impact and volume. And for Emma at Queen’s, the problem was that she had played too many matches in a row.
“She’s not ready to play many matches in a row. You could call it bad luck, but sometimes you have to be prepared to play two matches in a day, and even two in a row. I wish her all the best. I want to see her healthy.”
Emma Raducanu is now a major doubt for the US Open
Whilst missing Wimbledon was one thing, there was confidence that she would at least hopefully be fit for any events following it.
After all, the narrative being spun was that her withdrawals from Nottingham and Eastbourne were merely precautionary, leading many to theorise that her issue was touch-and-go for her home major.
How concerned are you about Emma Raducanu’s latest injury setback?
Raducanu confirmed a stress fracture in her lower right leg…
It has since become clear that this was not the case, as she actually suffered a stress fracture on her right leg.
Standard recovery for an issue like this could be as long as three months.
With that in mind, it’s no surprise that Raducanu has not signed up for a handful of top American tournaments, with her US Open participation now massively unlikely.
