Emma Raducanu has revealed that she has moments where she has regretted winning the US Open during her struggles since her shock victory in New York. And the former British No.1 admitted she has an “obsessive personality” and used to suffer “a day of mourning” after defeats.
Raducanu will miss Wimbledon and the US Open this year after undergoing surgeries on her wrists and ankle. And the Bromley-based star, 20, has slowly slipped outside the world’s top 100 after reaching the top 10 last summer due to injuries and loss of form. She has also split with coach Sebastian Sachs – her fifth full-time coach in two years.
Speaking to the Sunday Times Style magazine, Raducanu said: “That moment on the court, when I was celebrating, I was like, I would literally trade any struggle in the world for this moment. Anything can come my way, I will take it for what I have right now because this is the best thing in the world. I promised myself that, on the court that day. Since then I’ve had a lot of setbacks, one after the other.
“I am resilient, my tolerance is high, but it’s not easy. And sometimes I think to myself I wish I’d never won the US Open, I wish that didn’t happen. Then I am like, remember that feeling, remember that promise, because it was completely pure.” Raducanu, who had been ranked world No.150, became the first qualifier to ever win a Major at the age of 18.
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“I had to mature very quickly,” she added. “When I won I was extremely naive. What I have realised in the past two years, the tour and everything that comes with it, it’s not a very nice, trusting and safe space. You have to be on guard because there are a lot of sharks out there.
“I think people in the industry, especially with me because I was 19, now 20, they see me as a piggy bank. It has been difficult to navigate. I have been burnt a few times. I have learnt, keep your circle as small as possible.” Raducanu played Wimbledon last year assisted by LTA coach before hiring Russian Dmitry Tursanov for her US Open title defence which ended in the first round. Tursanov left after a trial period in October claiming there were “red flags” which prevented him taking the job on a permanent basis.
Talking about her injuries, Raducanu revealed: “The pain escalated last summer after Wimbledon. I started with a new coach and I was really motivated to get going. We were overtraining, a lot of repetition, and I carried on even through pain because I didn’t want to be perceived as weak. I was struggling with the physical pain but the mental side of it was really difficult for me too.
“I always want to put forward the best version of myself, or strive for that, but I knew I couldn’t. I very much attach my self-worth to my achievements. If I lost a match I would be really down, I would have a day of mourning, literally staring at the wall. I feel things so passionately and intensely.”
And she admitted: “I have an obsessive personality in that I fixate on something and I need to get it. I’ve been very high and very low, I’ve never really had this equilibrium, which is what I am striving for. I don’t think it is bad mentally to take a break, reset and get really hungry for it again.”
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