Emma Raducanu is having a bad season, and despite breaking into the Top 10 on the WTA Tour for the first time in her tennis career, the pressure keeps rising for her.
With each passing day, Raducanu is closer to returning to the place where everything started for her. Last year's US Open was when Raducanu skipped many steps and became a global superstar and a new ambassador for tennis with millions of people captivated by what she achieved.
John McEnroe had a front-row seat to it all, and it was a shocking conclusion of the New York Slam for him and millions watching around the world.
Raducanu had no pressure at the US Open, but she has not handled the pressure well since that US Open triumph, at least according to McEnroe, who spoke about the British player recently.
"Emma Raducanu, there's a lot on her shoulders. That’s an issue that first came up at Wimbledon when she was unable to complete that match. And then she had this historic "never-happened-before" win at the US Open. Now expectations are much higher and that makes it that much harder."
Raducanu herself has shut down talks of pressure in a fiery press conference following her Wimbledon exit. She said there was no pressure on her because she's a Grand Slam champion believing all the pressure is on those who never won one.
That is a fair comment with a dose of truth; however, the heavy pushback to the narratives clearly highlights she is aware of it. There is pressure on her whether she is ready to admit it or not.
"There are obviously a lot of great positives: there are people throwing money at her and she's famous for a great reason – winning the US Open – but the key is hopefully she has the right people around her. Hopefully, they can allow her to flourish."
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