Emma Raducanu lost in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open to Coco Gauff, but she's still satisfied with her performance.
The 20-year-old Brit suffered an ankle injury at the ASB Classic in Auckland, and her participation at the first major of the season was in doubt. However, Raducanu recovered in time and she was able to win her first-round match comfortably.
In the second round, she played against world no. 7, Coco Gauff, who seemed to be an unbeatable opponent based on her previous performances in 2023. Despite losing in the second round, Raducanu saw positives about her performance.
"I would say all the chips were against us and the chances of me playing this tournament were very, very low. I think 13 days ago, if you would have told us, 'Hey, you're going to be in the draw and win a round', it would have been a massive effort for sure. Saying that, I still think I didn't necessarily play my best today. I felt like I could have done better."
"I just have to review the body right now. I've had some niggles in the past few months, and I just need to get that sorted, train, and then we'll see after that. I'm really buying into and trusting the work that I'm doing with [new coach] Sebastian (Sachs) and the rest of the team. So I'm feeling good and confident that, in six months' time, I know it's not going to be the finished product, but hopefully I would have made strides."
Speaking about her opponent, Coco Gauff, who is yet to lose a match since the start of the 2023 season, the 2021 US Open champion said.
"I think it was always going to be a tough match and a tough challenge to play against Coco. She's a great opponent, great athlete. But it was a good experience to be out there on Rod Laver. I think in the beginning it took some adjusting to. But it's such a nice court, and I'm happy to have had a match on that now so, next time, if I come back and play again on that court, I'll be more familiar."
"I'd really like to play her again. I think that maybe with more than five hours under my belt of practice. She's a great opponent, and I think that we're going to be playing each other many times in the future as we're both young and coming, we're going to be the next generation."
0 Comments