Raducanu about her US Open title: ‘Sometimes I wish I had never won’

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Emma Raducanu (20) recently had to go under the knife three times. Interventions on both hands and the right ankle were necessary. It is the latest of many setbacks in the Briton’s life over the past two years. After the all-time record in September 2021 – when she won the US Open – Raducanu couldn’t match her performance and struggled from adversity to adversity. “It was tough, I’m patient and persistent, but that was really too much,” says the world number 68. “There were days when I wished I had never won the tournament.”

On the other hand, she considers “this incredible feeling of elation when she wins as motivation”. After the title almost two years ago, things moved very quickly, she signed advertising contracts with numerous top sponsors, became the youngest female member of the British Order of Knights (“Member of the Order of the British Empire”/MBE) and had to attend all kinds of major events. “I had to grow up so quickly, it was very stressful,” Raducanu says of that time. “I noticed that many at the time saw me as a piggy bank to be milked.”

The pain became too great

With the victory at the US Open – she was the first qualifier to reach the final without losing a set – she became a millionaire overnight. She is estimated to have earned more than £22 million last year, behind only Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka.

With Raducanu’s success came pressure and injuries. Growing up with a performance culture shaped by her Chinese mother, she pushed herself even when the pain in her wrists became unbearable. “In addition to the physical problems, there were also psychological problems. Because I didn’t want to look weak, I didn’t speak to anyone,” says the British. “And because I link my self-esteem to my success, it became more and more difficult for me. And the tour is just brutal if you don’t succeed or have weaknesses shows.”

With the three operations she has now been able to eliminate these alleged weaknesses. Mentally, she’s still working: “My goal is this balance between good times and bad. So far I’ve almost only had the extremes,” says Raducanu. “I have to work on that.” (nsa)

Source : Blick