"She's looking for an identity" - Wilander breaks down Raducanu's Australian Open victory
WTA
Emma Raducanu shook off injury concerns by producing an impressive performance in her opening match at this year's Australian Open. After the match, Mats Wilander gave an interesting assessment of her.
Expectations on Raducanu's shoulders feel less intense than last year. The media's focus on the Briton was relentless in 2022 after she stunned the tennis world by winning the 2021 US Open as an 18-year-old qualifier.
Raducanu struggled to be consistent throughout the 2022 season. She also suffered several injuries because she was not used to the intense physicality of competing on the WTA Tour from January until players finally got a break in November.
The 20-year-old hopes to learn from last year and be better prepared for the trials and tribulations of the WTA Tour. Radcuanu made an encouraging start at the Australian Open, winning a one-sided 6-3, 6-2 match against Tamara Korpatsch.
Seven-time Grand Slam champion Wilander recently said that he believes Raducanu can become one of the best players in the world. However, he thinks the former US Open winner needs to find a coach she trusts and can stick with.
Raducanu is working with Sebastian Sachs after splitting from Torben Beltz and Dimitry Tursunov in the last 12 months. Wilander praised her performance against Korpatsch with Sachs in the stands, but the Swede thinks she has not fully developed her playing style yet.
"She played really well. I don't think Emma Raducanu needs to play a lot of matches because she knows how to win on the big stage. She's responding to the pressure nicely. She's a great player, she seems like a great human being."
"For me though, she hasn't quite found what she's doing out there. Is she a Novak Djokovic, am I playing more defence or offence, am I completely like Simona Halep? She's looking for an identity, which is what you have to find and it looks like she's searching, and that's a good sign."- Wilander on Raducanu finding an identity on the court
