Jo Konta believes a third round Australian Open showing would be a great result for Raducanu

Despite winning the 2021 US Open and rising through the ranks, a successful Australian Open outing would be if Emma Raducanu made the third round, according to compatriot Johanna Konta.

Raducanu fought past 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens in the first round, and has looked shaky in most of her matches since claiming the title at Flushing Meadows. However, Konta believes that Raducanu's youth and inexperience at a grand stage may have played a part in her recent form.

“I think a win like that is really important, especially for her and where she is in her career,” Konta said in Eurosport’s Cube.

“She’s still very young and gaining experience. Although she has such a massive title against her name she hasn’t played a lot of matches on tour and hasn’t played a full season on tour.

“So the more of these matches that she has, the more she will get to know herself as a player, and also know the other players and how to play them.

“For her to have a three-set match like this really sets up her to know she can come through tough situations and that will help her throughout this tournament.”

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Raducanu has never faced a player inside the WTA Top 10 in her career, but all that may change if she reaches the third round, where she's projected to face two-time Grand Slam champion Simona Halep.

“She hasn’t faced a really top-ranked player before so I think it will be great for her to play someone who knows how to compete well, who knows how to play on these courts well,” continued Konta.

“I would definitely say to her to trust her instincts and to really bring her game to the court.

“It’s a really interesting position that she’s in. However she’s going to be learning on the ground about working her way through draws. For me, a successful Slam for her would be to make it to the third round and to have that match-up with Simona.

“Each tough match she gets to play is going to do her so much good in the long run.”

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