Laura Robson makes feelings clear on Emma Raducanu as tennis star's injury woes continue
Laura Robson has backed Emma Raducanu to shine in the future despite the tennis star's stock falling over the past couple of years
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Laura Robson has backed Emma Raducanu to shine in the future despite the tennis star's stock falling over the past couple of years.
The 21-year-old soared into the spotlight back in 2021 when she defied the odds to win the US Open.
However, Raducanu has been plagued by injury issues in the years since - with the Briton currently sidelined with a foot problem.
Furthermore, her schedule has faced plenty of scrutiny after she opted to play just one hard-court tournament ahead of the US Open.
Laura Robson has backed Emma Raducanu to shine in the future despite the tennis star's stock falling over the past couple of years
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She was dumped out of the Grand Slam in the first round in August and, in the aftermath, admitted she should have played more.
Robson, speaking to Sky Sports, has backed Raducanu to turn things around.
And she also thinks hindsight will benefit the 21-year-old when it comes to her decision-making in the future.
"The break came after Toronto, and with hindsight wishes she should've kept playing through and then had a bit more momentum going into the US Open," she said.
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Addressing comments made by Raducanu after the US Open where she said her decision to play just one tournament beforehand was a 'collective call', Robson continued: "It's tough listening to her say that in New York because you constantly have the feeling as a tennis player that you could've done things differently.
"It's still such a learning experience and the fact that she's still figuring out what works for her, figuring out where she wants to play, and how many tournaments.
"The game style has been a bit more aggressive over the last couple of months, which is great, but I think it's also a learning curve.
"When you look at her results when she has played well and consistently - she can beat almost anyone.
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"She's a great player with such an attacking game style but you just need to be able to do that day in, day out."
Despite Raducanu battling for fitness, she's still risen in the world rankings this year.
The tennis star entered 2024 as the world No 285.
But she's now risen to No 57 after playing in 13 competitions over the course of the year.
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Laura Robson thinks Emma Raducanu deserves credit for climbing up the tennis world rankings
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Robson believes Raducanu deserves credit - and also thinks she'll 'figure out' what's best for her going forward.
"When you think about the months that she's missed, to climb to the ranking she is now, it's actually impressive," she added.
"In that respect, she's done really well.
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INSTAGRAM"I think everyone, including her, would like to see it happen more often.
"It's all about figuring out what works for you and maybe she just got unlucky over the last few weeks because that would have been a run of four or five events in a row, which would have been great, but then you pick up one little injury or niggle and you have got to start again all the time.
"When you have the opportunity to play, she's now realised that that's the way forward and if you can play back-to-back weeks then go for it."
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