Emma Raducanu takes a risk: Major serve changes ahead of 2025 Season

Emma Raducanu reveals she 'took a risk' by changing her serve ahead of next season. 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu has confirmed she’s making significant changes to her serve in an effort to make it more effective in the long run.

The 21-year-old is currently competing at the WTA 500 Korea Open, where she has overcome Peyton Stearns and 8th seed Yue Yuan to reach the quarter-finals, marking the beginning of the Asian Swing. Raducanu is now set to face top seed Daria Kasatkina.

"If you’ve been watching my serve over the past few months, since the clay season, it’s gone through many iterations in terms of swing. In general, if you play a lot of tournaments, things can fall out of place without you even realising, and it becomes harder to get that natural feeling back," she explained during a press conference.

"We’ve been working hard over the past week, focusing on the swing and determining which one suits me best. These are pretty big changes; it’s not just about adjusting ball placement."

The British player is aware that these adjustments might have a negative impact towards the end of the season, but she’s aiming to be in top form for 2025. Raducanu has already reached World No. 54 in the live rankings, climbing steadily throughout the year, which means she won’t have to rely on wildcards as frequently for big tournaments next season.

"My coach and I decided to take a risk and tweak a few things. We know it might not pay off in the short term, but one thing I believe in is my ability to pick things up quickly. In the first match, it didn’t fully come through, but today it definitely did."

"I just have to think long-term. My goal is to finish this season strong, but ultimately to set myself up as best as possible for next year because I really want to hit the ground running in 2025."

Raducanu will face top seed Daria Kasatkina in the quarter-finals on Saturday. Kasatkina currently leads their head-to-head 2-0, with their most recent encounter taking place on the grass courts of Eastbourne International, where the Russian secured a straight-set victory.

Reflecting on her next match against the World No. 13, Raducanu said: "I think these courts suit her because the ball bounces quite a bit. But for me, every time I get exposure to top-level opponents, it's invaluable. It helps build my confidence, and it’s a match where I don’t really have anything to lose."