Emma Raducanu's US Open success was incredible for her, but fellow Briton Katie Swan confirmed it also inspired many of her colleagues.
Swan is trying to break into the Top 100. The most notable moment of her career so far was reaching the second round of her home tournament at Wimbledon in 2018.
Raducanu's rise was rapid. She initially generated attention by progressing to the fourth round of Wimbledon before having her historic success at the US Open, winning the title as a qualifier without dropping a set.
The 19-year-old's incredible run in New York inspired many amateur and younger players. The number of people playing tennis in Britain rose dramatically in the weeks following Raducanu's triumph in Flushing Meadows.
However, it was not just kids and amateur players who were inspired. Swan confirmed that her fellow British professional players were in awe of Raducanu's achievement, which made them believe anything was possible.
“What Emma achieved last year was incredible. The fact that she was able to do that, it really inspired a lot of us and made us believe that something like that was possible."
Swan also feels the grass season is a period where British players can spur each other on. Since British players receive many wild cards at Wimbledon and other British events before the third Grand Slam of the year, they train together and push each other to be better.
"The grass season always seems to be a time where everyone always enjoys themselves, likes playing in front of a home crowd, and kind of all spurring each other on. We all train together as well, so if you see one of your mates that you train with start doing well in an event, you start to believe if they’re doing it, why can’t I do that as well? It’s like a snowball effect."
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