Emma Raducanu makes telling decision after US Open woes

Emma Raducanu appears to have learnt some lessons from her recent US Open nightmare, with the tennis star adding another tournament to her calendar as she looks to end 2024 on a high. The 21-year-old went into the final Grand Slam of the year hoping to beat Sofia Kenin and advance to the second round.

Yet Raducanu was beaten by her American opponent in three sets, with the Briton forced to endure plenty of criticism in the time since. The tennis star confessed after her defeat to Kenin that, in hindsight, she should potentially have played more. Raducanu skipped the Paris Olympics this summer because she felt playing on clay wouldn’t be beneficial ahead of the final few months of the season.

And the youngster also played just one hard-court tournament prior to the US Open, too. Now, Raducanu appears to be learning from those lessons as she looks to rediscover the form that made her a Grand Slam champion just three years ago. She has now signed up to play at the China Open, which takes place from September 25 to October 6.

Raducanu had already agreed to play in the upcoming Korea Open, which will run from September 16 to September 22, as well as the Hong Kong Open. By adding a third competition to her calendar, she is clearly hoping to play her way into form after being accused of not playing enough. Raducanu remains one of the brightest prospects in British tennis. Her victory at Flushing Meadows three years ago shows that, when fully fit and firing, she can compete with the very best.

And she’ll be hoping to silence her critics with some storming performances as she prepares for the Australian Open in January. Martina Navratilova recently opened up on Raducanu after her problems in New York. And the tennis legend called for Raducanu to ‘take ownership’ of her career after looking rusty in her defeat to Kenin.

“I think Emma needs to take ownership of herself, of her brand, and of her tennis career most of all,” she told Sky Sports. “She needs to be clear who her team is, what her goal is and not let herself off the hook. “Aryna Sabalenka, when she had problems with her serve and everybody was trying to help her, she took ownership of it and fixed it herself.

“Emma needs to be in charge and she’s old enough to know what she should be doing – surround herself with good people and then trust in them, and give it time so that you can see the results. “Technically she is great, but she needs more matchplay. I still don’t think she is as fit as she should be. “I feel like if you don’t want to play the Olympics because it’s a different surface, you need to fix your body.