"My best results come when I was smiling, enjoying it and having fun; So, you get to feel really rewarded" - Emma Raducanu shares valuable advice
Emma Raducanu is still just 19 but is already setting an example for other youngsters to follow. The British teenager has become a superstar on and off the court since her incredible US Open victory last year and has some helpful advice for others based on what she has learnt so far.
Raducanu recently showed off her glamorous side in a photo shoot for luxury fashion brand VOGUE+ and sat down to speak about her outlook on life and career so far. Raducanu will begin her US Open title defense next week as the 11th seed
The British player, who also has Chinese roots from the maternal side of her family, spoke about the importance of having fun at one's job. Raducanu expressed that her biggest results on the tennis court have come when she was enjoying herself out there.
"I'd say to have fun because it just makes what you're doing so enjoyable," Emma Raducanu said on the advice she would give her younger self.
"My best results come when I was smiling, enjoying it and having fun. So, you get to feel really rewarded, and it doesn't feel like you're working at all, because you're just doing what you love," she added.
On a lighter note, Raducanu said that she would advise her younger self to listen to her parents and follow their advice.
"If I could give myself advice, when I was younger, I would probably say, listen to your parents more because it would avoid a lot of arguments," the World No. 11 said further.
Raducanu's most recent WTA tournament, the Cincinnati Open, did not yield the result she hoped for, as she lost in the round of 16. However, she looked in great touch in her 6-4, 6-0 victory against Serena Williams and a 6-0, 6-2 win against Victoria Azarenka.
𝗥𝗔𝗗𝗨𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗨 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗠𝗦 𝗣𝗔𝗦𝗧 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗘𝗡𝗔 🇬🇧
US Open champion Emma Raducanu brushes aside the departing 23-time Grand Slam winner Serena Williams 6-4, 6-0 to reach Round Two in Cincinnati!
#CincyTennis
https://t.co/ALfV1h3Ip2
"Playing completely free again" - Emma Raducanu on her current form
Emma Raducanu opened up on the challenges of facing great champions like Williams and Azarenka and why she is over the moon with the way she played in both those matches. The biggest takeaway for the British player was the fact that she is playing freely again and is willing to take a lot more risks on the court with her decision-making.
"The biggest thing, however, is me swinging like playing completely free again, not really pushing the ball just to get it in, like I actually am going in for the shot. Way more accepting of the errors that I make," Emma Raducanu said in an interview with Sky Sports after the win against Azarenka.
Raducanu further spoke about the challenge of playing such high-intensity matches and why they are even tougher than they may seem.
"It was a really tricky match and those matches are difficult although it might not seem like it from the outside. When you know you are playing an amazing champion you know you have to be on it again like the previous match," she added.
@WTA)Emma Raducanu is IMPERATING in this Cincinnati debut!
After a 6-4 6-0 win over the legend Serena Williams, the young British crushed former world number 1 Victoria Azarenka 6-0 6-2 😮
(🎥 @WTA)
https://t.co/UIz7WAzKNx
Emma Raducanu lost 7-5, 6-4 to American Jessica Pegula in the third round of the Cincinnati Open. She has not reached the semifinals of a WTA tournament since the 2021 US Open.