Emma Raducanu, who won the U.S. Open in 2021 isn't focused on results right now. As she works with a new coach, she wants to level up her game.
Emma Raducanu has felt at home in Mason, Ohio... on the practice courts.
With a bye to the Round of 64, the British 22-year-old has had extra time to work with newly hired Spanish coach, Francis Roig, who was a part of 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal’s team between 2005 and 2022.
Raducanu, who won the 2021 US Open, is not currently focused on grand slams, like the upcoming US Open in late August. She wants to level up her game, continuing that quest at the WTA 1,000 Cincinnati Open.
“I know there will be a time where I'll be targeting big tournaments, master’s and slams, but to be honest, right now, that's not my goal,” Raducanu said. “My goal is to improve as a player.”
Raducanu starts Cincinnati Open well
Raducanu looked decisive in her first match since she added Roig in a heat-ridden, 6-3, 6-2 victory against WTA No. 43, Olga Danilović. Despite entering the tournament at No. 39 in the rankings, she now projects to rise to No. 33.
Raducanu was broken on her first serve, but got the break right back immediately to draw level, 1-1. Soon after, she won two straight sets to take a commanding 3-1 lead.
She then broke Danilović’s serve after fighting back from 30-0 and securing it after her opponent sent a groundstroke long.
Danilović broke Raducanu’s serve in the next game after double-faulting at 30-40, before she pulled level at 3-3. But Raducanu won the following three sets to close the first set, winning the final eight points and finishing with back-to-back aces.
The second set followed a similar trajectory after both players held their first service games.
Raducanu almost broke Danilović at 1-1, but the Serbian overcame the two break points and six deuces to draw ahead 2-1. But the Briton also held her serve without dropping a point before breaking Danilović's serve to go up 3-2.
Soon after, Raducanu swept Danilović's serve to take a commanding 5-2 lead, securing the game with a down-the-line backhand, before finalizing the match on her serve.
“Bar the first game today, that was not very much fit, but other than that, I was pretty mature and disciplined in my performance,” Raducanu said. “ I took care of my service games really well. And I knew that playing Olga, who's really difficult and really dangerous as a lefty and with big strikes, it was going to be important.”
Extra time on practice courts helped Raducanu
Playing as a seeded player this week, Raducanu has had extra time to work on the practice courts, which she said is where she feels her game develops the most.
Raducanu is looking to fill gaps in her game and improve her overall play while working on the quality of her shots. She added that she has taken a more mature approach, trusting the work she has done behind the scenes.
Raducanu said she noticed four or five points in the match where she executed a point she worked on in training.
Eventually, the grand slams will come.
“My home this week so far has been the site,” Raducanu said. “I've been here (for) like, 13 hours a day, every day, so part of that is training, a lot (of it is) the rain in between … but it's actually a site that has been so nice actually to hang around, and it's so modern.”
Raducanu could face WTA No. 1 next
Next, Raducanu could face world No. 1, Aryna Sabalenka, in her Round of 32 contest, if the Belarusian defeats Markéta Vondroušová. She lost to Sabalaneka in a tightly contested third-round Wimbledon contest on grass, 7-6 (8-6), 6-4.
Sabalenka and Vondroušová have played eight times, splitting the contests four apiece.
Raducanu said that when she can see how she stacks up against top players when she plays one, but she also noted that day-of form can affect results.
“I'm reasonable enough, and I guess honest enough with myself, to know that different surfaces favor different people, and where my game is at in comparison,” Raducanu said. “So, I think the grass gave me a bit of an advantage (against Sabalenka), but we'll see how it goes.”
Regardless of how her Cincinnati Open run turns out, Raducanu is off to a positive start. She hasn't lost her opening match in a tournament since the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, as she has climbed the WTA rankings.
But for now, winning appears just to be a bonus.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Emma Raducanu focused on leveling up at Cincinnati Open
Category: Tennis
