Emma Raducanu is the most naturally talented young British player to come through in a generation, she could go all the way to the top of the game.
It feels like we’re watching someone at the beginning of what’s going to be a very special career, almost like when Andy Murray came through, although they have different styles.
Emma’s more aggressive than Andy was at the start of his career, she is already very brave and bold in how she goes after her shots and takes her game to her opponents, which is something Andy became later on.
You’ve got to have a lot of self-belief and inner confidence to be able to play like that. It’s an exciting thing to watch, real showstopper stuff.
She’s been blitzing opponents who are vastly more experienced than her but can’t seem to cope with her level of intensity and her strength of mind on the court. The excitement around her is incredible.
The atmosphere for her match with Shelby Rogers was electric as it always is in New York. For sure, there were British fans there who helped but interestingly she’s really connected with the American public as well – they were whooping and cheering and really enjoying watching her play.
She channelled that much better than Rogers was able to even though it was her home slam.
Emma is a breath of fresh air, she really is. Just a natural communicator. She communicates because of that wonderful smile and just playing with so much freedom.
She’s got this amazing combination of charm but with a ruthless competitive streak in her. Considering it’s her first year on the main tour, it’s astounding how easily and effortlessly she’s adapted to it.
Emma and I are both Kent girls, I met her when she was about 12 at Bromley Tennis Centre. I remember her smile and really jolly and fun personality very clearly.
Excitement growing at Emma Raducanu’s tennis club
At the local tennis club where Emma Raducanu honed her incredible skills, the buzz of excitement over her meteoric rise is growing every day.
The teenage sensation has played at Bromley Tennis Centre since she was nine, although she only plays there occasionally now.
Manager James Carlton told i Raducanu came in for a hit up a few weeks ago but after watching her incredible run to the US Open quarter-finals he wonders when they’ll next see her.
He said: “She’s an inspiration to the kids that play here. When you speak to them they’re pretty impressed, obviously some of them have seen her training on neighbouring courts.
“They are hoping to see her again, I don’t know how much she’ll come back here after her current success in terms of training, I imagine she will be jet-setting around the world playing tournaments, but she’s got all of our best wishes and hopefully she can keep going.”
The centre is next to Raducanu’s secondary school Newstead where the teenager recently aced her A-levels. She would play there most days before and after school and it now puts her matches on the televisions inside so people can watch her play at grand slams.
Mr Carlton added: “Speaking to coaches round her she was always very dedicated and single-minded in what she was going to do and ruthless on court, which you’ve seen in the last few days.
“She was always the top end of her age groups nationally. It’s always hard to judge who’s going to make it because the chances of making it are so minuscule, but she’s done incredibly well to do that.”
In the tennis community everyone had picked her out as being the best of the bunch but you never know how someone will transfer onto the main tour and she’s just done it seamlessly.
You don’t want to put too much pressure on her, but we could be looking at one of the future greats of British tennis.
Virginia Wade is from Kent as well, it must be something in the water – we’re both really excited about Emma and think she’s amazing.
You’re comparing across a completely different era – Virginia is obviously the last British woman to win Wimbledon and Emma is going to have a lot of pressure on her shoulders to come close to what she achieved but I feel she can cope with it.
I think the difficulty she had in her match with Tomljanovic at Wimbledon is all behind her. Don’t forget, everything was new for her then and it was probably overwhelming and a bit of a shock to the system in her first major tournament.
She’s had six weeks on the tour since then, learned how to deal with the pressure better and proved she is more than fit enough to cope with anything now.
Wednesday’s win will have sent a few shockwaves through the locker room but she will have all the players’ total respect now. She has an aura around her at the moment and is capitalising on it.
Anyone can win a tournament when they get to the quarter-finals but we can’t get carried away. It is just going to get tougher and tougher.
Her next opponent Belinda Bencic is a US Open semi-finalist and just won the Olympics – she’s vastly more experienced and is the favourite.
How to watch the US Open
- Channel: Amazon Prime Video
- How to subscribe: You can sign up for £6.99 a month and watch via the Prime Video App on tablet, mobile or set top box
- Dates: 30 August-12 September
- Time: Each day’s order of play is on the US Open’s official website
I think the fact Emma has played seven matches, including three in qualifying, has given her momentum. She looks like she’s got limitless energy and probably has.
But it’s a lot of tennis in a short period – imagine playing seven football matches in the space of 10 days. There will be emotional exhaustion but she looks to me like she can keep going.
When a great champion comes through they know their own minds. I would hate to give any advice to her, but if I had to, it would be to just keep doing what you’re doing.
The world is her oyster and it’s limitless how good she could be.