Emma Raducanu says she is in a positive headspace with Roland Garros around the corner and does not want to “hide in a hole somewhere” after losing comfortably to Coco Gauff at the Italian Open.
Raducanu was comprehensively beaten on Monday as the Gauff advanced to the quarter-finals in Rome in an hour and 20 minutes.
The match was potentially Raducanu’s final competitive action before the French Open, which gets under way on May 25.
While the straight-sets loss served a reminder for Raducanu of how much ground there is to make up on the players at the top of the world rankings, she walked away from the encounter focused on the positives, suggesting she could still compete at next week’s Internationaux de Strasbourg.
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Highlights of Emma Raducanu against Coco Gauff from the Italian Open
“I would love to just keep improving, keep playing. I think that’s a positive for me,” Raducanu told Sky Sports.
“I don’t want to go and hide in a hole somewhere, I want to get back out there, so that’s good.
“We’ll see how it goes in the next week before the French, if I get into Strasbourg. But, for now, I’ve played a good 12 days on the trot, so I’m looking forward a day off or so and then getting back to it.”
Raducanu credited her promising showing in Rome to playing with enjoyment, insisting that she was still seeking to “win the day” despite the loss to Gauff.
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Highlights of the Italian Open match between Emma Raducanu and Veronika Kudermetova
” It makes it more enjoyable, it makes it more sustainable. It doesn’t make the losses feel as bad, because I just know that every day I’m trying to be the best version of myself, I’m trying to win the day and I’ve kind of gone back to that,” she said.
“I didn’t win on the match court today but I’m going to find a way to win the day still today.
“It was a tough day in the office. I just have to take a lot of positives. I am getting out more, I am enjoying myself and taking it in wherever I go, because it is tough on the road. So, I think just trying to find small pockets of the day, small glimmers, to make it more enjoyable.”
Henman: Raducanu’s game moving in right direction
Sky Sports Tennis pundit Tim Henman believed the match was tighter than the final scoreline suggested and that the tournament on the whole has been progressive for Raducanu.
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Emma Raducanu says nothing is formal with coach Mark Petchey and is taking on a ‘less is more’ approach to the 2025 WTA season
He said: “When you reflect on the score, it looks very straightforward, but I think there were a couple of really long games, but on each of those occasions it was Gauff who found a way to come through.
“It wasn’t the result or performance Raducanu was looking for. She didn’t have the opportunities to dictate because Gauff was hitting so aggressively from the back of the court.
“But when you reflect on Raducanu’s clay-court season so far, it’s been very positive. The clay courts at Roland Garros are the trust, the best, they will suit Emma even more.
“Her game is moving in the right direction, she’s up to 42 in the live rankings. A number in the back of my mind is 32 – can she be seeded pre-Wimbledon and get that protection in the early rounds on grass?”
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