Maybe Emma Raducanu was never going to be as good as she showed at the 2021 US Open. At the time, still a teenager, she shocked the tennis world by winning the Grand Slam. It did not seem to matter that on her run to the title, she did not face a top-10 ranked WTA player. She defeated everyone she had to, and no one else could take advantage.
That title remains Raducanu's only one on the tour, though. That is the only final in her career. She has struggled with injuries (including surgeries on both wrists and an ankle), but even when seemingly healthy, her form has been consistently poor.
She also appears quite mercurial in terms of her will to succeed. She also seems to lack self-awareness, understanding which moments are bigger than she is. She withdrew from playing mixed doubles with the retiring Andy Murray in 2024, which did not allow Murray a proper farewell.
Jim Courier has some harsh truth about Emma Raducanu
Raducanu is also beginning to lose sponsorships. This is what happens when a player consistently underwhelms. Vodafone recently withdrew from a £3 million partnership they had with Raducanu. She has not produced winning results, and is not on the verge of doing so.
Former ATP No. 1 Jim Courier recently spoke with the Tennis Channel about Raducanu, and he said that no one expects Raducanu to do well during the clay court season. The surface is arguably her worst, but she also does not have an excellent track record on any surface. But winning the French Open, something Courier did twice, is out of the question.
Courier said, "What I do hope is that it’s able to last at least through the grass-court season. No one’s expecting her to play well on clay; it’s not a natural surface for her. (New coach Mark Petchey has) already changed her service motion...But I think overall this is a net positive for her on so many levels, we’ll see where it goes."
Raducanu can be great for tennis. She has an effervescent and unusual personality. One wonders if she might be the female version of Nick Kyrgios, as both players have talent, but how much they enjoy practicing and playing is in question. The Brit is only 22 years old, though, so maybe her career will turn around.