Emma Raducanu's 2024 comeback may not happen in Australia as a former British tennis player may have hinted that the 20-year-old Briton does not plan on playing at the Australian Open. In a recent interview for Amazon Prime, Raducanu told ex-British Olympic medal winner Laura Robson confirmed that her recovery is going well and that she is now "in a better place to compete" than she was before multiple surgeries.
During the WTA Finals, ex-British players Robson and Sam Smith were doing WTA Finals commentary when they started discussing Raducanu's comeback. According to Tennis365, during the commentary "Smith seemed to suggest the 20-year-old was not planning to play at the Australian Open in January." Further, the report says that "Robson sidestepped that comment from Smith" but that there is "a growing expectation" that Raducanu may opt for a very cautios approach to her comeback and not really play from Week 1.
What did Raducanu tell Robson on Amazon Prime?
After being dismantled by Jelena Ostapenko in the Stuttgart first round in April, Raducanu decided it was time to end her injury struggles and undergo surgeries on both wrists and her right ankle.
Raducanu hasn't played in a while but addressing her injuries in a proper way was probably the best thing to do. Now, Raducanu feels much better than it was the case before her surgeries. “It was difficult to train after the surgeries, so it was very sedentary in the beginning.
Through the whole period, I’ve been doing a lot off court, reading a lot and watching some tennis. Mentally, I feel like I’m in a better place to compete now than I ever have been before since the US Open. I’m hoping to get back on board for next season.
I know it’s going to be difficult when you haven’t competed for a long time, like almost a year. It’s going to probably take me some tournaments to get up to speed. But, once I do, I think I’m in a better headspace to compete now," Raducanu told Robson during a recent interview for Amazon Prime.
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