"I didn't think I would play" - Raducanu after Indian Wells exit

Wednesday, 15 March 2023 at 12:05

Updated at Wednesday, 26 July 2023 at 14:49

byZlatko Vodenicharov

Emma Raducanu lost to Iga Swiatek last night and it ended a very successful stint in Indian Wells, one that almost never happened.

Raducanu arrived in the Californian city with no preparation due to tonsillitis the week before and with a wrist issue that made it hard for her to play tennis. It certainly didn't allow her to play the way she wants to play but still, Raducanu rose above all of that and made her way to the 4th round losing in respectable fashion to Swiatek.

Overall I feel like physically she is much further ahead than I am at this moment. I think I was able to stay competitive in the beginning of the first set. I think the first three games took over 20 minutes. And we were having some pretty epic rallies, and I actually think my defense got better.

— Raducanu on battling Swiatek <br>

Raducanu somewhat considers it a miracle to be able to play at all as she expected to skip this week. She elected on playing her 1st round clash only 20 minutes before the match so winning that one and making it to the 4th round makes her happy.

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I think especially because of where I was before this tournament, didn't think I would even play, to be honest. But to have played and then won three rounds and beaten two amazing opponents, yeah, I'm very proud of myself.

Raducanu is excited about what the future holds because she proved to herself at this event that she can hang with the best. With continuous work, she's certain that she can get to that level, the level of a number one which she saw up close today.

"Now it's just about consistent work to physically get to where I want to be. I saw a taste of the level where No.1 is at physically and how she is at the corners, repetitive, relentless. Yeah, I just couldn't take that."