Can Emma Raducanu win consistently?

Emma Raducanu
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

It can take a long time to recover on the court, to understand what you need to do, or something, but the former U.S. Open 2021 champion, Emma Raducanu, is getting better now. This week, she is playing Stuttgart,  a very solid area, and Raducanu seems to be more thoughtful, on court and off. Last year, she got hurt in April 2023, and then she could not play during the rest of the reason, as she had to undergo a surgery, on both her hands and her ankle. She did win a couple terrific matches this week, but over the past three and a half months, she has been up and down. However, she can make a decision, and then to decide to go crosscourt, or down the line. She can be  aggressively, or be patient. It is her decision.

Raducanu beat Angie Kerber pretty easily, but there were long rallies, yet she most of it.

“You need to be really careful not to overpress. She makes the court seem really small,” Raducanu said. “ There were moments in that match where I didn’t really know where to hit the ball because I felt like she was covering so much of the court and she was using my pace really well.  I think just not trying to squeeze the lines too much and kind of just playing the shot and almost not trying to hit winners, and accidental winners I feel like are the best way, because I wasn’t trying to blast winners around the court. I was just committing to my strokes and would hit winners by accident sometimes. I feel like that’s the best way to approach it because then you’re not getting stressed out. It’s just a pleasant surprise when it happens.”

She must have been. The 21-year-old is a fine player with her forehand and her backhand, and she is also somewhat quick. Her serve is so-so, and at the net, she is OK, but not fantastic. Maybe she will, someday, but she has to become substantially better, as she has only won one event, and nothing else.

“I think the last weekend I played some great tennis. I’m mentally in a good place,” Raducanu said. “I’m taking a lot of confidence from the training I’m doing. I feel like I can actually, like, lean on that more so now because I’m actually doing the work, whereas last year it was very difficult. I have played a lot of matches and I’m feeling fatigued than being super fresh and losing. It’s funny, because you always want something that you can’t have.  But I am playing some really good tennis.”

She is going to play even better, as she has to face the No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who can take you out immediately. … Also in the quarterfinals, Elena  Rybakina is ready to try to win another title, but while she can look stunning, she can also fold. Or maybe she will not, yet she has to face against the Italian Jasmine Paolini, who has had a terrific season, winning Dubai. She is more aggressive then she did five years ago….Coco Gauff has had a pretty good year, yet as she has said, she can miss some key opportunities. She will go up against Marta Kostyuk , a re-match, as Gauff beat her 7-6, 6-7,6-2 in the third, a marathon. One more time?

With the men, how about the teenager, Arthur Fils, who a big match in Barcelona? It will take him more of a while, but his two coaches, Sergi Bruguera and Sebastien Grosjean, have done it a lot when they went into the big matches, so maybe they can teach him with more various strokes…Rafa Nadal lost there and while he did not play great when he went down, but he just came back, with his frequently injury,  so assuming that he can play 100 percent, then he will be very good again. But that is a huge question, health wise…There are two players who are seeded like Casper Ruud and Stefanos Tsitsipas, and they look on top of it. But can they win the event? That is possible, as long as they can be a victim, on the famous clay.

The Picks in Stuttgart and Barcelona: Monday, April 17

Jelena Ostapenko
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

Veronika Kudermetova over Coco Gauff
The Russian has not had a good year, even though she is ranked No. 13. If you look at that, you would think that she is playing fantastic, and last year, she threw in some amazing shots. However, this year, Kudermetova has lost a ton of contests, from with the very good players, or the mediocre competitors. Perhaps she is mentally down. However, she can blitz her forehand and her backhand, and she is also very aggressive. She did beat Gauff in Doha in three sets on the hardcourts, returning very well. The American did play extremely well in the Fed Cup in Florida, but she immediately had to fly across the ocean, so while she is a teenager, it can be taxing. If she can wake up, then she can crack the balls, but in reality, Kudermetova will out-hit her in third dramatic set.

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Jelena Ostapenko over Emma Raducanu
Ostapenko is so, so up and down, there are times when she is on fire, and there are other times when she is totally checked out. The Latvia can create her shots, and she can also spring it. Ostapenko can also be very steady, throwing with some deep shots. Raducanu can also engage the rallies, and then when her backhand is right there, and she can really go for it. The problem with Raducanu is she is not deciding what she can do at the match, to be much more patient, and toss it all around. Eventually, the Britain will find herself, but the former 2021 US Open champion is losing a lot, still, so Ostapenko will win it in two odd sets.

Diego Schwartzman over Yibing Wu
Here is huge toss-up, as Wu recently won Dallas, beating John Isner. Wu is only 23-years-old, so clearly he has improving before last year, he won a ton of matches, mostly in the small tournaments, but look at this: a year ago, he was ranked No. 1749, and now, he is ranked No. 56. That is extremely good. However, Wu has to face versus Schwartzman, when the Argentine beat him in straight sets in Miami. Wu can be super consistent, but Schwartzman can mix it up a good amount. Schwartzman will win in three, long, sets.

David Goffin over Feliciano Lopez
Both of these two are aging, really fast, now. The Belgian Goffin was ranked No. 7 in 2017, playing some tremendous ball, with his terrific one-hander and with some heavy topspin. Goffin did manage to reach the final at the ATP Finals, and he did win six titles, but not the biggest ones. The Spaniard Lopez is still playing, even though he is 41-years-old, which is a little bit crazy in the singles, but many people just want to play until they pass, because they just want to go walk on the court and have another fine day. Lopezis ranked way down, 593, which is going down and down, but at least in 2015, he made a career high of No. 12 with his fun one-handed back hand, and at the net, too, That is a pretty darn good. Yes, Lopez is OK on the clay, but Goffin is still better than him and he will beat him in three, wicked, sets.

The Picks in Miami: Wednesday, March 22

Bianca Andreescu

Bianca Andreescu  vs. Emma Raducanu
The Canadian is rising again, and given that she won the 2019 US Open, everything is possible. But not quite yet, as Andreescu is playing better, but she can also mentally disappear. The same goes with the Great Britain, Raducanu, who also won the 2021 US Open, when she was on top of the ball. But the 20-year-old lost her way, and she still is trying to pick up the peaces. This will be a marathon, and Andreescu will out-last Raducanu in three brutal sets.

Sloane Stephens vs. Shelby Rogers
The one-time Grand Slam champion, Stephens, has not done much over the past few years. At times, she does look impressive, but that is very rare. Rogers can be up and down, and there are times when she can be real, and she will go for the lines, but she can also miss a number of shots. However, Rogers knows that Stephens is struggling each week, so in Miami, she will were her down, mentally. Rogers will win it in three, long sets.

Andy Murray vs. Dusan Lajovin  
The 35-year old Andy Murray has improved this year, and while he is aging, he still strokes it. His backhand is so solid, and also, he can really mix it up. Lajovin can be consistent, and he will attempt to bash the ball, but he has never gone deep at the Slams, which is why Murray will win  in two easy sets.

No. 1 Iga Swiatek is looking upward

Iga Swiatek
Mal Taam/MALT photo

There are times when Iga Swiatek starts to miss it. Not a lot, but here and there. When she misses and with an easy shot, a few years ago, she would be frustrated, and then point to point, she could lose it.

But not now, even though when you walk on the court, when she is practicing, or in the matches, your rackets can disappear. But she does try to problem-solving. The No. 1  has to, especially when she is losing.

“Well, most of the times I feel like I have improved, but there are some matches where I feel like a little bit in chaos, and I don’t know which way to go that it’s gonna work.  But honestly, it’s not happening often. In more cases I kind of choose the right solution, and then I’m playing better,” Swiatek said. “Then the momentum changes and, yeah, I just go with the flow.”

Swiatek has won three Grand Slams, and exactly a year ago, she won Indian Wells, beating Maria Sakkari in the final. She then won Miami, Stuttgart, Rome, Roland Garros, the U.S. Open and San Diego, and this year, in Doha. That is a lot, but over the past two and a half months, she looked pretty good, but not flawless. She still has work to do, and she knows that.

“After Australian Open [when she lost against Elena Rybakina], honestly I did a lot of work to not feel like I’m playing not to lose. So right now I don’t feel that way. Well, just reminding yourself, getting rid of the pressure a little bit, reminding yourself that you’re there to run, to play those longer rallies, and not to expect that you’re going to make every shot perfect because you’re doing it in practices. I just change my mindset, and I was really like digging into everything tennis-wise, so it kept my mind busy from all the fuss that is around to the rankings and everything.”

She has a huge first serve, her forehand and her backhand are gigantic, and she is full tilt. Immediately, she can attack, and then when it is right, she can bash it, into the corners, or down the line. As long she has a chance to win the match, then she can be patient and thoughtful. In her last match, she edged over Bianca Andreescu, who was playing almost as well as she could, but Swiatek out hit her. She was smarter.

On Wednesday, Swiatek dominated again and took out 2021 US Open champion, Emma Raducanu 6-3, 6-1.

Before the match, Swiatek said, “I just know how her shots feel on the racquet, because before I haven’t even practiced with her.  So it helps that way, but on the other hand, it’s great because we are playing on hard court, and there was clay, but actually this surface is slower. So I think I have to, like, really take care of the tactics anyway, and we’ll see. Honestly, like every day is different. Stuttgart match was like almost a year ago. So long time ago.”

NOTES
Aryna Sabalenka edged Barbora Krejcikova 6-4 in the third set, in a very good match. The No. 2 Sabalenka finally won a Slam at the Australian Open, and she was always very mighty, but her serve was spotty, and she threw together so many faults. But now, she figured it out, at least mentally, and if she continues to be stable, then she will eventually be No. 1. Or not. But this year?

 On Tuesday, the wind kicked in at Indian Wells, very hard, and it was difficult to control it. However, there were three, long matches, and when it finished, and Coco Gauff , Karolina Muchova and Petra Kvitova came through. Even if they did not play great, they didn’t droopy.

That was a dramatic match, although there were some many errors, but Kvitova beat Jessica Pegula  6-2, 3-6, 7-6(11). The two time champion Kvitova  can hit the ball so hard,  and she can put it away, but she can also disappear. But not today, during the heavy wind,  she waited until she could made a terrific shot. That was fine win. 

How he managed to win, when Daniil Medvedev won it 6-7(5), 7-5(5), 7-5 over Alexander Zverev even though he got hurt in the second set. But he has now won 16 in a row. He is on fire, again.

Frances Tiafoe continues to move on. On Tuesday, after a slow start, then he was much more consonant . However, each day it will get tougher, and he will face off a solid player, Cameron Norrie. That would be a three setter. As he said, “I think I was much more raw, kind of just went out and played. I think now you overthink it a little bit and now you’re older and your perspective and, back then I was just playing and enjoying, but you don’t really understand the magnitude of things.”

Day 2, 2022 US Open, the picks

Alize Cornet
Mal Taam/MALT photo

Emma Raducanu vs Alize Cornet
Raducanu, ranked No. 11, won the 2021 US Open last year. Oh, really? Who knew that before Flushing Meadows that this teenager would play her so steady forehand and backhand, set after set after set. But, she did and then everyone knew that she can be terrific. But in the last 12 months, she has been up and down. The pressure is totally on. The Frenchwoman knows that, and also, she has been pretty good even last week in Cleveland when she reached the semis. She has played so many matches, and sometimes she is so consistent and other times, she is flat. There will be some fascinating points, with some wild backhands. Cornet really wants to reach the second week at the US Open, but Raducanu wants to rise, again. She will win in three sets.

Danielle Collins vs. Naomi Osaka
Talk about a pick-em. Yes, Osaka has won it twice, and when she did it, she was so strong and so focused. But, in the past year and a half, due to the vicious COVID-19, she was hit with depression. After that, she didn’t want to play in the matches. So far, since she made it into the final at Miami, she has won one match, and four lost. Osaka is now ranked No. 44, and given that she won the US Open in the 2018 and 2020, she can be mentally off. Maybe she can be motivated against Collins. However, the No. 19 Collins is very forceful, and she also goes for it immediately. It should be a bangup match, and Osaka will finally be happy and win it in three dramatic sets.

Diego Schwartzman vs. Jack Sock
The Argentine has been for years, and he always get into the rally, and grind it. Plus, when he has a chance, Schwartzman can swing away, and when he does, he can pocket a lot of winners. Years ago, the American actually got into the top 10, winning Paris. After that, his body got hurt and he wasn’t trying hard enough in the singles. In the doubles, yes, he is very good. In singles he has improved slightly, but he is ranked No. 107. Not good enough. He did say that he is trying again, and he thinks that if he is 100 percent, he will win many more matches. But not against the No. 16 Schwartzman, who knows that he wants to push him side to side, and tire him out. He will, and he will win in four sets.

Frances Tiafoe vs. Marcos Giron
Talk about a matchup, as both of them have practiced a lot, so they know each other well. Tiafoe is in the top 26, and Giron is in the top 56, too, meaning that at the US Open, they really want to reach the second week. But only one can win it, and when they are playing, they certainly be very creative and attack when it is right. They have to hit a lot of first serves — not second serves — smack their forehands, and bend down low at the net. It doesn’t look like that they will be nervous, so the most important is to be very focused. Tiafoe will edge him in five sets.

Emma Raducanu: ‘I’m just trying to stay on one path’

Emma Raducanu
Mal Taam/MALTphoto

Emma Raducanu might be the US Open champion again, if she manages to clean it up on court. On Tuesday, she easily beat Serena Williams in Cincinnati, 6-4, 6-0. She was injured — and many people have in the summer — but currently, she is getting better. The next day, she blew out Vika Azarena, 6-0, 6-2, another Grand Slam champion.

Over that last 11 months, that might have seemed impossible, but she was so impressive in this tournament.

When Raducanu is on, she can be very fast, and she can also bang the ball. Her first serve is very big, and her return is muscular.
 
Against Serena, she was so excited to take her down, even though she thinks that she is the best player ever.

“I think that a big part of the match today was definitely the mental side, to not be intimidated by all her achievements. That was what I was focusing the most on, really present and thinking of my game, thinking of what I needed to do. Physically I held up pretty well” said Raducanu, who will face against Jessica Pegula next. “Like there were some longer exchanges, I held up well and I scrapped. I made her work. I feel good right now.”

She was also against Azarenka, who can crunch her forehand and her backhand, but her serve is still marginal. Plus, Azarenka is not a super quick runner. However, Raducanu can sprint.

The brit does want to win at Cincinnati or go deep. Still, on the mind of this 19-year-old was her run to US Open glory.

“I think that at this level, you play anyone, it’s a really difficult match. Each of those wins kind of build confidence regardless of the level you’re playing, every single win counts,” she said. “But, of course, this one more so, because you’re playing like the greatest. But I’m not trying to get too high or too low right now. I’m just trying to stay on one path and trajectory, because I know like I kind of feel like I have been on both ends of that, and, yeah, I’m just happy, proud of myself, but just moving on.”

By the way, she wants to play Simona Halep – that would be their first matchup – because “I think she all around is like, for me, all around the most complete player. She moves extremely well. She’s aggressive. She can defend. She makes you work so hard for every point. Could be like a slow, painful like she gets you (smiling).”

NOTES
Karolina Pliskova lost today. Yesterday, she said that “I’m 30 and I’m still like here. I don’t really want to like quit at the moment. So, I think I just want to see how it’s gonna go like this year, next year. Then I will make decision.” She still does like playing tennis, so maybe she can run up at the US Open. She reached the final in 2016.

Taylor Fritz stepped on Nick Kyrgios in two sets. Kyrgios wants to rest, and his body wore down, but the American played terrific today. He is No. 13, and he has been saying that he wants to be in the top 10 ASAP. Well, then he can do it this week, as long as he will not freeze up.

Where did Ben Shelton come from? His dad, Bryan, also played in the tour, winning Newport, twice. The 19-year-old Ben just upset Casper Ruud, so he must be very good, already. John Isner had two very good wins, beating the No. 10 Hubert
Hurkacz. The 37-year-old may not win Cincinnati, but if he can return better than he usually does, Mr. Ace may go further.

TennisReporters.net 2021 year-end review: top 20-16, women

Simona Halep

20. Simona Halep
Before she became injured, the Romanian played for years, and she rarely went down and retired. She may be a little bit short, but she is so strong and she can sprint. She is emotional, and very intense. Halep has won two Grand Slams, knocking off a number of the other top players. However, over the years, she can go back and push the ball, instead of slapping harder. Next year, assuming she will be healthy, she will punch herself back into the top 10 and will have a solid chance to win another Grand Slam.

19. Emma Raducanu
The Brit came out of nowhere at the US Open, given that when she started the year ranked No. 345. She won her firs Grand Slam, starting in the qualifying, and winning 10 matches, in all straight sets. She out-hit so many good players, like Belinda Bencic, Maria Sakkari and Leylah Fernandez. Her forehand and her backhand were deep and ruthless. She looked sort-off good at the net, too. In New York, she was placid and very confident. The 19-year-old will be around for a very long time, but in the fall, she was mentally exhausted. However, she is very young, and next year, she will be refreshed.

18. Jessica Pegula
That was quite a year by the American, who finally understood that she had to confront her mental game, improve and let it all go. Over many years, she wasn’t beating the top 20 players, so many people though that she looked decent, but not fantastic. But in 2020, and then in 2021, she started hitting much better, with depth and pace. She has played some long matches, and watching it, you could see that she just wanted to fight and she did. In 2022, she certainly wants to go into the top 10 for the first time. To do that, she has to amend her serve, play at the net, and return game. That is a lot of work.

17. Petra Kvitova
The Czech has always been a super, nice person, talking with the press and in onn-on-one interviews. She is so realistic about her game, whether she loses ofwins. Some other players barely want to talk at all. Kvitova has grown up a lot, and she is aging, but at least she has won two Grand Slams, and she also won some huge events. But there are times when on the court, she can be mediocre, and then she can check out. She does crush the ball, both sides, and she has a jumbo first serve. Her weakness is moving from left to right. The thing is that if she wants to win another Slam, she is going to have to refocus on her movement. If she does, she had a very good chance to win Wimbledon again.

16. Angelique Kerber
The German has won three Grand Slams and, like Halep, she likes to rally, rally, rally until her opponent becomes exhausted. Kerber, who could probably jump into the ocean and swim for 3,000 miles, with no problem. However, last year she began to mentally buckle, and she grew sorrowful. In the first six moments, she was shaky, but in the summer, she began to play better, finally, winning a lot of matches. The 33-year-old loves playing tennis, and it is her entire life. So, in 2022, if she begins to play amazing, then she can win just one more Slam. 

The upstarts: Medvedev and Raducanu win 2021 US Open

At the start of the 2021 US Open, Daniil Medvedev looked confident. For the first time at a Slam, when he walked on the court for two weeks – regardless when he was hitting the ball, even if he missed a few shots – he believed that over a few hours, he could win.

The Russian knew that for the most part, even if he was a little bit nervous, he would continue to be mature and continue to improve his powerful game. He finally did it, when he over-came the famous Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.

No. 1 Djokovic had won 27 matches in the Slams this year. But, on Sunday, he was tired, mentally, and he could not produce enough winners. He was barely mediocre. Plus, Medvedev was so consistent, and getting a lot of depth on his shots.

“I do feel sorry for Novak because I cannot imagine what he feels,” said Medvedev. “For the confidence and for my future career, knowing that I beat somebody who was 27-0 in a year in Grand Slams, I lost to him in Australia, he was going for huge history, and knowing that I managed to stop him definitely makes it sweeter and brings me confidence for what is to come.”

Medvedev conquered with so much variety, with his vast serves, and into the corners. He can rift his forehand, and in Flushing Meadows, his backhand became gaping and with a lot of spin, or flat it out.

Qualifier Raducanu goes 20-0 in sets
On Saturday, the very young Emma Raducanu won the US Open, too. Talk about being so consistent, and very smart on court. She is swift, she can rip her forehand and her backhand, and she can change it up, also. She beat Leylah Fernandez 6-4, 6-3. Canadian Fernandez had a wonderful tournament, but again, in the final, she was a little bit slow.

“I think it shows that the future of women’s tennis and that the depth of the game right now is so great,” Raducanu said. “I think every single player in the women’s draw definitely has a shot of winning any tournament. So, I hope that the next generation can follow in some of the steps of the greatest legends, for example, [the former No. 1 player] Billie Jean [King] right here.”

Raducanu was focused and you could see it in her eyes. She became superior this year, with her potent serves, her returning, her forehand and her backhand. She came through qualifying – a first for a Slam winner – and didn’t drop a set. No woman will eclipse a 20-0 record of set wins in a major.

On Saturday, the locked-in Raducanu hit it so firmly, very fast and reliably, too.

From now until the end of the season, Medvedev and Raducanu could win a number of matches.  Next year on the hardcourts at the 2022 Australian Open, they will draw a huge amount of attention to see if they can win another Slam.

Will the pressure slow them down, especially for Raducanu who has never been in such a large spotlight? Post-major wilting has happened before. Let us watch, and then we will know how whether they will win a lot, or just go home. And sleep.