"One year ago I did my maths exam" - Raducanu ahead of Kostyuk matchup

Emma Raducanu did not initially realise it, but her first-round win on Friday at the Madrid Open coincided with a significant anniversary.

Only when she saw an alert on her mobile, prior to defeating Tereza Martincova of the Czech Republic, did she know what happened exactly 12 months previously. She explained:

"It’s funny because I was on my phone and I looked at it and it sent me the memories of one year ago today — I took my last maths exam. Then I was just reflecting on that and I was like, “Oh my God, 365 days ago I was sat in an exam hall doing paper three."

She further said:

"That afternoon after my morning exam, I went to go hit some balls because I had to get ready very quickly for the grass season. I hadn’t played tennis for two months. I was like, “Wow, I’ve got a few weeks to get myself in shape to play my first WTA at Nottingham."

She finished off with:

"It definitely took me a while to adjust to everything that’s been going on. But I feel that if you would have told me any of the results that I’ve had this year — like, for example, just winning a round in Australia — if I hadn’t won the US Open, that would have been a good result for someone who’s 19. Definitely, in more recent weeks, I’ve just taken more pleasure in the journey of it. Even when I’m losing, I find it a great challenge to pick myself up because it’s relentless getting yourself back up and I am doing that right now."