"It's pretty much a year anniversary since my comeback to competitive tennis" - Emma Raducanu after French Open 2R loss
Speaking after her second-round loss at Roland Garros, Emma Raducanu said that she has had a good year since staging her comeback to professional tennis on the Brit tour in 2021.
The 19-year-old made her Roland Garros debut this week, beating Linda Noskova in a tough three-setter. She looked on course to beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich in the second round, taking the opening set. However, the reigning US Open champion ran out of steam, winning only two games for the rest of the match.
First career third round in Paris 👏
#RolandGarros https://t.co/bNeyHToKWw
Nevertheless, the British teenager opted to dwell on the positives. She reckons she has come a long way in the last 12 months since returning to professional tennis on the Brit tour.
"Yeah, we were saying like with my team this morning, it's pretty much a year anniversary since my comeback to kind of competitive tennis. I was playing a Brit tour in Connaught," Raducanu said.
She said she expected this year to be tough, adding that she was looking forward to the challenge.
"I think I have come a long way since then. I think I do really welcome going around the second time. I think this year was always going to be challenging for me to adjust, find my feet. There's always something new. Like I'm always asking where everything is. I have no idea where everything is," Raducanu added.
"I feel like in the last 12 months I have definitely grown a lot" - Emma Raducanu
Emma Raducanu hasn't hit the same heights this year since making a fairytale run to the US Open title last year. The triumph made her the first qualifier - male or female - to win a Grand Slam in the Open Era.
18-y.o. Emma Raducanu completes the most improbable, extraordinary major run ever, beating 19-y.o. Leylah Fernandez 6-4, 6-3 to win the #USOpen.
Ranked 150th, Raducanu is first ever to win a major title as a qualifier.
She won *all 20 sets* she played, never needing a tiebreak.
The 19-year-old has won only eight of her 18 matches this year. Nevertheless, Raducanu feels she has grown a lot, both on and off the court, since her magical Flushing Meadows triumph.
The Brit also spoke about how she has improved her ability to fight on the court, with the experience opening her eyes to the quality of the WTA tour.
"I feel like in the last 12 months I have definitely grown a lot. On and off the court I feel like I have probably improved like how much I fight. I think that's one of my biggest strengths and even more so on the tour this year, and it's definitely opened my eyes to just how good everyone is and how much depth there is in the game," the Brit said.
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