"I’m putting a lot of trust in the work I’m doing behind the scenes" - In-form Emma Raducanu sees hard work pay off at US Open

It has been a dream start to Emma Raducanu's 2025 US Open campaign, after breezing past qualifier Janice Tjen 6-2, 6-1. In her first two ties, the number one Brit has only conceded six games, whilst only being on court for 122 minutes.

After knocking out 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova, it looked like Tjen would prove to be a tricky customer. Raducanu, on the other hand, was in no mood to stick around on Louis Armstrong, breaking at the start and end of the first set to put her in a commanding position. She carried on her rampant form by winning the opening five games of the second set, before taking her first match point to put her through to the third round. The 2021 US Open champion will either face former Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina or qualifier Tereza Valentova, with the pair facing off later today.

It is fair to say that Raduacnu is close to, if not at her best. She walked through those first two matches without even breaking a sweat, winning her first ties at Flushing Meadows since her title triumph four years ago. The 22-year-old was pleased with her performance when speaking after her second-round match.

"No, I'm very pleased with how I played today," she said. "Second round after two days, you know, it kind of breaks the rhythm a little bit, but I was playing Janice, who's a super dangerous opponent. She was playing extremely well. I thought any ball that I put mid-court that was not necessarily good enough, she just put away easily. So I'm really pleased with how I performed today, and it was so good to play in front of all of you guys on Armstrong. I loved it once again, so thank you so much."

Raducanu was quick to acknowledge the talent of her opponent, praising her after a standout victory in her debut Grand Slam event, whilst also being the first Indonesian to win a Grand Slam match since 2003. Tjen had looked up to Raducanu when she went on that magical run, and when asked, she said: "Yeah, I'd seen something like that. And it puts a little bit of pressure on, but at the same time, it's a really nice feeling. I think Janice is playing some really dangerous tennis. She's gone through some top opponents — beat one of the top seeds first round — so, yeah, playing really well. I'm sure she can build and take a lot of confidence from this week. It was great to play her, and I look forward to the next time."

It seems that Raducanu has found some consistency this year. Back on the brink of the top 32, along with re-establishing herself as the number one Brit, it has been a positive year for her. She has also racked up 26 wins, the most she has achieved in a season on tour. When asked what had changed, she said:"I think, first of all, the consistency of doing good practice days every day — building on that. I think after Miami, I did some really good work. I started to do it, but then I also feel in the last few weeks, I've really kind of stepped up with what I'm doing on and off the court. I'm really happy that I have those people in my corner over there and really grateful for them. So I'm just looking forward to building day by day, doing my best — that’s all I can do. And I think now I’m putting a lot of trust in the work I’m doing behind the scenes, so it kind of takes a little bit of pressure off. But at the same time, whenever you play a match on a big stadium, you feel a bit of pressure — but I like to try and use it as much as I can.”

Finally, she was questioned on her love of art, and if she had the cahacne to embrace it whilst in New York. She said: "No, I actually hate to say that I didn’t. I actually practised quite a bit the last two days — I needed to gear up. But maybe after the tournament, I’ll have a bit more time. Until then, I'm just focusing on what I can do. I’ve been walking around a bit in Central Park, but yeah — I’ll leave the art until a little bit later. I look forward to it."