Emma Raducanu Expresses Dissatisfaction About Women’s Scheduling at the Australian Open

No. 28 seed Emma Raducanu began her Australian Open campaign with a straight-sets victory over Thailand's Mananchaya Sawangkaew.

Emma Raducanu Expresses Dissatisfaction About Women’s Scheduling at the Australian Open

Emma Raducanu (image via Australian Open)

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Emma Raducanu commenced her Australian Open campaign with a straight-sets win against Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew. Prior to her opening round fixture, the British No. 1 criticized the scheduling at the tournament, saying, “It does not make sense”.

Raducanu had a rough start to the season, with a three-set defeat to Maria Sakkari at the United Cup and a straight-set loss to World No. 161 Taylah Preston at the Hobart International quarterfinal. Speaking about the Australian Open scheduling, the 23-year-old remarked:

I think it’s very difficult to be scheduling women’s matches after a potential five-set match. To me, it doesn’t really make as much sense. But I think after seeing it, you know, the initial reaction is probably, oh, it’s a late one. Then you deal with it, and you try and shift your day and adjust. You would love to have more time in the environment, more time practicing. But I guess I was pretty much handed the schedule to try and turn it around and make the most out of what is in front of me

In the second round, Raducanu will face Austria’s Anastasia Potapova on Wednesday. This will mark their first on-court meeting. Potapova defeated Suzan Lamens in three sets in the opening round of the Australian Open. Raducanu’s best result at the tournament came last year, when she reached the third round in Melbourne.

Emma Raducanu embraces new nickname given by a fan

Emma Raducanu embraced her newly acquired nickname ‘Rado’ after fans at the Margaret Court Arena cheered her on during her opening round win against Mananchaya Sawangkaew. Raducanu responded heartily to the crowd’s enthusiasm and wrote her new nickname on the courtside camera after the win. She went on to speak about the nickname in her post-match press conference:

Apparently, Down Under I’ve got Raddo. Never heard that before. Pretty original. Obviously I loved the support. I thought it was great on both sides. To have that on my side in the big moments, it was a good spur of encouragement. I said he can come to any match. I just need to try to locate him. I hope he comes back

Raducanu also spoke about how she adjusted for the evening match, booking court time between 9.15 pm and 11.15 pm the night before.

Emma Raducanu Australian Open 2026
Emma Raducanu (image via Australian Open)

It is completely different to the day, it’s a lot slower, colder, the ball doesn’t travel as much through the air and it’s not as high bouncing but I got used to it a bit yesterday and really happy that I did that.

Sawangkaew was two points away from a double break and a 4-1 lead in the first set, only for Raducanu to fight back and advance after a 6-4, 6-1 win. The Australian Open marked Sawangkaew’s Grand Slam main-draw debut and return to the tour after being sidelined for six months due to a back injury.

If Raducanu wins her second-round Australian Open match, she would potentially face World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in the third round, a matchup that delivered great thrill and excitement last season. Raducanu is yet to reach the final of a WTA tournament since her title run at the 2021 US Open. She reached a semifinal last season at the Washington Open.

Also Read: Tim Henman Sets ‘Realistic Goal’ for Emma Raducanu As He Backs Her to Win at Australian Open