Former ATP player Tim Henman recently spoke about Emma Raducanu and her withdrawal from Roland Garros.
Raducanu withdrew from Roland Garros a few days ago, which surprised some of her fans. When she explained why she did it, things quickly fell into place because her reasoning was quite logical.
Her Roland Garros participation was not certain because she had to play the qualifies, and she wasn't really keen on that. On top of that, she wanted to use this time to better prepare for the grass and hard court seasons, which are more important to her than a lone event on clay.
Although it's a Grand Slam, it's not one where she would have been the biggest favourite, despite her recent progress on the red dirt. Former player and current tennis analyst Tim Henman commented on her decision to skip the major in a conversation with Daily Mail.
"If she wants to move her focus on to the grass already and continue to work on her fitness that’s her prerogative. Sometimes we can read a bit too much into these things."
"She played some great clay court tennis at the Billie Jean King Cup and in Stuttgart but having said that I think grass will suit her game even more."
Henman doesn't think her choice came down to her simply prioritizing grass season over clay season but more because it's a special tournament for Brits. On top of that, Henman thinks that British players have advantage over rest of the world on the grass courts.
"I don’t think it’s a question of over-prioritising. It’s just the fact that it’s their home event and Wimbledon is the most prestigious tournament in the world. Also, British players, because they have played on grass more than their foreign competitors, they do have a bit of an advantage."
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