Tim Henman believes Emma Raducanu will win ‘many more big titles’ in the future, as he hails her ‘competitive spirit’ and calls for patience with her development after British No 1’s difficult start to the year
- Emma Raducanu exited the second round of the Australian Open earlier this year
- The young British No 1 looked in clear discomfort in her defeat by Danka Kovinic
- Tim Henman believes that Raducanu will win ‘many more’ titles during her career
- He has also called for patience over her development after her US Open triumph
Tim Henman believes Emma Raducanu will win ‘many more big titles’ in the future, and has hailed her ‘competitive’ streak after a difficult start to the year.
Raducanu, 19, was knocked out in the second-round of the Australian Open this month, having gone down to Danka Kovinic and struggled with finger blisters.
The tournament was just the sensational US Open champion’s third Grand Slam appearance, and Henman believes her attitude will take her to more trophies.
Tim Henman believes Emma Raducanu will win ‘many more’ titles after a difficult start this year
‘It’s been a pretty challenging start to the year for Raducanu,’ Henman told Eurosport. ‘But I loved her competitive spirit.
‘I thought she did absolutely brilliantly to come through the match against Stephens, and I’m sure that would have given her a big boost of confidence just to get that match under her belt.
‘But then she had another spanner in the works with blisters on her hands.
Raducanu was knocked out of the Australian Open earlier this month, losing to Danka Kovinic
The young British No 1 was forced to play with a blister on her hand, affecting her forehands
‘So it’s been hard, but I love her attitude. I love her work ethic. There are going to be lots of opportunities ahead for Raducanu. I think it’s a similar conversation with a lot of young players like Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz.
‘We need to be patient. Emma is the least experienced of all these players, she’s barely played a handful of professional tournaments and is only in her third Grand Slam.
‘Yes, she’s already won one, but she certainly needs time to develop and learn her trade and improve all aspects of a game and if she does that, then sure she’s going to win many more big titles in the future.’
Raducanu revealed that there were people in her team who didn’t want her to play against the lowly-ranked Kovinic in Melbourne.
Henman has praised Raducanu’s ‘competitive spirit’ but called for patience over her progress
The British No 1 remarkably won the second set, despite not being able to strike a proper forehand due to the blister, but eventually lost 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.
Incredibly, that setback marked the first time that she has suffered defeat in a completed match at a Grand Slam.
After the setback, she said: ‘Before the match there were people in my team who didn’t want me to play.
Raducanu looked in clear discomfort in her match against Kovinic, and required treatment
‘I fought so hard just to come out to Australia and play here, so I just left it all out there on the court.’
Raducanu revealed that the focus for the next few weeks will be ‘catching up’ on fitness, having missed out on training time after contracting Covid-19.
She is facing the prospect of playing in the Middle East, with WTA 1000 events in Indian Wells and Miami quickly approaching later this year.
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