Tennis great Martina Navratilova has called on Emma Raducanu to sort out her coaching situation, adding that she is playing well enough to climb into the world’s top 30.
Raducanu’s impressive run to the Miami Open quarter-finals came to an end at the hands of fourth seed Jessica Pegula on Wednesday.
The American survived a mid-match surge from Raducanu en route to a tough 6-4 6-7 (3-7) 6-2 victory.
Despite the loss, Raducanu’s run to the final eight in Miami marked her best performance in a tournament since being crowned 2021 US Open champion.
Tim Henman, Martina Navratilova and host Gigi Salmon reflect on Emma Raducanu’s defeat at the Miami Open
“It was amazing,” Navratilova told Sky Sports Tennis. “The way she looked at the end of that second set, you think this match is over and somehow she won the set, she won the tie-break, and still competed in the third but she was not feeling well.
“I think the stress contributed to that because the weather was fine, it was cool, they finished after 11pm so the weather was [not a factor]. The humidity takes it out of you a lot, but still – this was something more for Emma and it’s just amazing that she finished the match.”
Navratilova added: “If she stays healthy and plays this well, then she’ll be seeded at Roland Garros. I think she’ll move up the ranking well enough into the top 30. The biggest question mark is her health.
“Hopefully she can sort out her coaching situation because she’s been in a state of flux, but I think she needs to commit to somebody and stay with them for a little bit, see how that works.
“If she played like she did against Pegula, then the sky’s the limit.”
Raducanu is getting back into top 20, says Henman
Despite requiring a medical timeout during which she had her legs and back iced, Raducanu went head-on with Pegula
“I thought the quality of the match, the ball-striking from both women was absolutely phenomenal,” said former British No 1 Tim Henman. “Pegula is number four in the world, she’s been in the US Open final, hard-court is her best tennis and Raducanu went head-to-head, toe-to-toe with her.
“When you see that level from Raducanu, not only of the tennis, but also of the movement, the resilience, the fighting spirit, if she keeps doing that then she’s getting back in the top 20, top 30 I think and that’s what we want to see.”
Raducanu: I’m really proud of myself – heat made me feel dizzy
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Highlights of Emma Raducanu against Jessica Pegula from the quarter-final of the Miami Open
Raducanu told media post-match:
“I’m really proud of how I fought, I competed well throughout the match. Jessica played a really good match from start to finish and just showed her class and levels at the end, I think.
“Despite losing today I can take some good positives from this week and look forward now. It wasn’t easy and I played some really good tennis to get here, so it was nice to just have that feeling of playing pretty well again.
“I think that’s been missing, and also the fighting and competitive spirit is something I drew out of myself this week and it was refreshing and nice to have that feeling on the court again.
“I just felt really dizzy [before medical timeout]. I felt faint. It was very humid out there and we had a long wait, so maybe it was just an accumulation.
“There were physical points as well, with long rallies and heavy conditions. I don’t know how I kind of regrouped in that second set but in the third I definitely struggled a little bit.
“I’m not sure [what’s next]. I think I need to take a beat and reevaluate what I’m doing. This week was good but I just need to figure things out and make a plan from there.”
Pegula credits Raducanu’s display
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Raducanu and Pegula played out this stunning point during their quarter-final clash…
Pegula gave credit to Raducanu’s performance in her post-match comments, saying: “It was tough. I played a good first set, a little let down in the second, got it back, went up 2-0 in the tie-break, but it kind of flipped.
“She started moving the ball really well, serving good… sometimes it just happens, but I just wanted to come out in the third really strong, really quick, and just kind of jump on her and not keep the third set too close.”
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