After winning the US Open at just 18 years old, Emma Raducanu had the world at her feet. However, it appears that success isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and the British tennis player has spoken candidly on life since lifting her first grand slam title.
“When I won I was extremely naive,” Raducanu admitted. “What I have realized 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,” the world No. 128 added.
Raducanu won the 2021 US Open, becoming the first qualifier to win the major, after defeating Canadian Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in Flushing Meadows’ first all-teen final since 1999.
The Brit went on an incredible run throughout the tournament, not dropping a set in nine matches, and looked a shoo-in for future success on the circuit.
But since recording the surprise victory, the 20-year-old has been plagued with injuries.
“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,” Raducanu acknowledged.
At the start of May, Raducanu underwent surgery on both wrists and one of her ankles and said she would be away from the court “for the next few months” while she recovered.
“It pains me that I will miss the summer events and I tried to downplay the issues, so I thank all my fans who continued to support me when you didn’t know the facts,” Raducanu wrote in a hand-written letter posted on Instagram.
Raducanu admitted to The Sunday Times that she played through this pain to avoid being “perceived as weak.”
As well as struggling through the various injuries, the mental side of the sport was also becoming hard to bear for the young tennis star, she said.
“I was under so much pressure to perform, people had no idea what was going on and I had to have this facade, to keep everything inside. It has been really hard.
“And then to be scrutinized for it when they don’t know what is going on. I am very young and still learning and making mistakes. It is a lot harder when you are making mistakes in front of everyone and everyone has something to say about it. The tour is completely brutal.”
CNN’s Ben Morse contributed to reporting.
Speaking to The Sunday Times, Raducanu touched on the side of sporting success that many don’t see and the impact it has had on her.
