“Emma Raducanu can be dangerous at the French Open,” Barbara Schett feels the US Open champion has everything to succeed on clay
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Barbara Schett, Emma Raducanu
Despite a great start at the Madrid Open, Emma Raducanu lost to Anhelina Kalinina 2-6, 6-2, 4-6 as her hopes of reaching another quarterfinal were crushed. The young Brit admitted that she was carrying some niggles and had to struggle a lot with his back pain. It is something that held her back against the Ukrainian in a match where she was the favourite to land the punches and get into the quarterfinals.
Raducanu will now has been very good on clay courts with so much limited experience. People felt that she can be a force at the French Open as her preparation in the buildup to the Grand Slam has been fabulous. Recently speaking to Eurosport, Barbara Schett touched on several aspects of Raducanu as she believes that there is no reason why the teenager cannot do well in Rome. She said, “I don’t think people will expect for Emma Raducanu to win the French Open but, you know, she could definitely be dangerous.”
Schett understands that Grand Slams are always difficult and getting results there are always special. But according to Schett getting to a Wimbledon semifinal will be more of an impact for Raducanu than doing well at the Roland Garros. “We know a Grand Slam tournament is always different and especially in the women’s side, things or draws or the sections do always open up somehow. But the big challenge will definitely be Wimbledon for Emma Raducanu. I think if she could reach a semi-final, that would be unbelievable,” she added.
Barbara Schett feels Emma Raducanu has everything in her game to succeed on clay
Emma Raducanu played on clay court for the first time on tour was back in Stuttgart Open where she reached the quarterfinals and was only defeated against the eventual champion and World No.1 Iga Swiatek. She played sublime tennis and was in good touch throughout her stay in Stuttgart and carried that form at the Madrid Open where again she played really well and showed good signs until her back pain hampered her progress into the last eight.
Therefore Barbara Schett feels that there is no reason why Raducanu cant play and succeed on clay just because she has not had prior experience. “Why shouldn’t she play good tennis on the clay, even though she probably hasn’t practised or hasn’t trained much on it?” the Austrian added.
Lastly, she highlighted the movement and the other important things needed to succeed on the red dirt. She also praised Raducanu’s athleticism and feels that she can be a force on clay in future events. “But once that movement is good on the clay, she knows how to slide and she knows how to move towards the ball. And she’s an absolute phenomenal athlete. She can do really well on clay,” Schett concluded.
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Atrayo Bhattacharya
(193 Articles Published)