ANALYSIS: Rating Emma Raducanu's return to tennis so far after smattering of grass court success

After overcoming the challenges of triple surgery, Emma Raducanu has made a remarkable return to the tennis court this year. Let’s delve into the first part of her season which started slow but picked up pace as the year went on.

After the Stuttgart Open in April of last year Raducanu elected to call time on her season early and undergo triple surgery. The surgeries were designed to address all of her physical concerns so that by the time she recovered, she would be fully good to go. The surgeries proved a success, and Raducanu took a conservative approach to her recovery, returning only earlier this year.

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Her first event back was the Auckland Open, and it was a decent return with one win and one loss. The second event was the Australian Open, and it was much of the same. She played pretty okay but then was beaten comfortably by a player who simply had more matches than her at the time. Next up was a short stint in the Middle East, where she played in Abu Dhabi and Doha. Again, it was pretty okay but nothing special overall.

Although some things were there initially, Raducanu took a long time to find her best tennis. Her ball-striking was clean as ever, but she didn’t have much consistency in the rallies or the serve. Indian Wells was the first event where she looked pretty decent. Two wins and a match against Aryna Sabalenka were good experiences for her as she slowly prepared for clay.

Clay was a major surprise, as she showed up with a pretty good level. The first event was the Billie Jean King Cup, where she played for her native Great Britain in France in a very hostile environment. Her wins over Diane Parry and Caroline Garcia were spectacular because she was an outsider in both, especially as they were playing in France. The wins were crucial to securing Great Britain’s spot at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.

Emma Raducanu in particular starred at the Billie Jean King Cup.

The solid clay level would continue in the coming weeks, as she added two wins in Stuttgart before getting beaten by Iga Swiatek in a very competitive match. Madrid wasn’t very good, as she was beaten immediately, but then she made a rather interesting decision. She skipped Roland Garros to start practising on grass early, and many analysts loved it.

Very few people gave her a good chance to do anything at Roland Garros, but an early start to grass season preparation certainly increased her chances of doing well on grass. Not many players have played on grass as much as Raducanu has, which was a huge bonus for her. Prep on grass started really early, and it was the right decision. She had a good showing straight away in Nottingham, making the semi-final, where Katie Boulter beat her.

Eastbourne was another solid showing for her as she made the quarter-final and then came Wimbledon. A somewhat shaky first match was quickly forgotten after she smashed Elise Mertens in the 2nd round. A nice win over Maria Sakkari in the 3rd round put Raducanu close to a quarter-final, which is exactly what many were hoping for. A run like that is exactly why she skipped Roland Garros in favour of an early prep. Her chances on grass were simply much higher than on clay.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get a fairytale as she was beaten by Lulu Sun in three sets. Funnily enough, Sun was the fairytale of this year’s Wimbledon because she was a qualifier who caught fire that week in London and played some amazing tennis. It was a match Raducanu could have won, but ultimately, it was still a decent run for her. She played 26 matches so far and won 16 of them. When you look at that record, it’s not holding special, right?

Well, you’re right. It’s not that special, but we must look at the overall picture. When Raducanu broke out in 2021 with a Wimbledon run to the 4th round, followed by a sensational triumph at the US Open, nobody really knew what to expect from her. She was an unknown teenager with tremendous potential, but there was no guarantee that she would do anything else in her career. Her next two seasons certainly weren't that impressive, as she totalled 17 wins in 2022 and only five wins last year. So when you look at that, this season has been a great success for her.

First of all, she’s healthy and playing fairly regularly. That’s not been the case in the past, so that’s a very good sign moving forward. Second of all, she’s only one win away from her best year since 2021, when she won 25 matches. There is a pretty decent chance that she’ll eclipse that total, so by definition, it would be her best season in terms of wins.

Finally, she demonstrated quite a few things through her performances. The Billie Jean King Cup sequence demonstrated a player who kept her cool in an extremely hostile environment, delivering two crucial points for her country. Dealing with that amount of pressure was pretty impressive.

She’s also shown herself to be quite in tune with what she needs to do. Skipping Roland Garros might have seemed crazy, but it was the right move. Skipping the Olympics is also something some have criticized, but she’s going early to the US, and if she plays an amazing US Open, a lot of people will be quiet.

In summary, this season has been a testament to Raducanu's resilience and strategic acumen. Her goal of staying healthy, playing well, and improving as a player has been met. As we look forward to the second part of the season, there is a sense of anticipation for even greater achievements.

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