Emma Raducanu will return to the tennis courts at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals, and she's motivated ahead of the tournament.
The British player wanted to enjoy the Asian swing, but unfortunately for her, it was cut short by an injury that forced her to retire from her match against Daria Kasatkina after only 31 minutes.
For a moment, it looked like Raducanu would not return to the courts again this year, but she was working towards a goal, and that goal was making an appearance at the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Malaga.
Now, the Brit is with the team in the Spanish city, and it seems like she is confident in being able to step out and compete for her country. After another rough patch, this tournament could be a proper confidence booster for the 2021 US Open champion, who would certainly need it.
In the first round of the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals, Great Britain will take on Germany, with the winner of this tie playing against Canada, who had a first-round bye, in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
Speaking ahead of the event, Raducanu stated that it would mean a lot to her to be able to finish the season with a positive result, especially in a team competition.
"Yeah, it would mean a lot. I mean, it's the end of the season and I know the other girls have had a very long season, just finishing pretty much."
Naturally, Raducanu followed the results of her compatriots as well. She recognized that current British No. 1, Katie Boulter, had a great Asian swing as she reached the semi-finals in Tokyo and the final in Hong Kong.
Raducanu knows that teaming up with Boulter can yield great results for her country, and she once again repeated that she would really want to do well in Malaga.
"Boults (Katie Boulter) had a great run in Asia towards the end and I'm sure she is feeling very confident but even though mine finished a bit earlier in Seoul, I, yeah, I would love to do well in this tournament."
Obviously, playing for her country serves as a great motivation for Raducanu. She wants to represent her country well on the biggest stage, and she managed to do that once already.
It's thanks to her that the country can play at the Finals this year, as Raducanu led the team to a shock win over France in the qualifiers in April.
The tie was played on an indoor clay court, benefitting the French team, and it started with Dianne Parry beating Katie Boulter 6-2, 6-0. On top of that, Raducanu lost the first set to Caroline Garcia 3-6, and it looked like the British team would go down 0-2 after the first day of play.
But Raducanu started an incredible comeback, beating Garcia 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 to score the country's first win, and on Day 2, she staged another comeback, beating Parry 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(1) to secure the country's spot at the Finals. It's that win over France that the Brit remembered also in Malaga.
"Playing for my country, I think I did really well in France and it bought very good things out of me. So, I hope to try and do the same here."