Bianca Andreescu’s advice to Emma Raducanu: ‘Sometimes it’s good to chill’ and take ‘a day off, two days off’

WTA Tour
Emma Raducanu receives treatment on her back

Bianca Andreescu sympathised with Emma Raducanu after the British No 1’s latest injury setback as she knows a thing or two about bursting onto the tennis scene and then struggling to adjust to the rigours of a full WTA Tour season.

The Canadian hit the headlines in 2019 when she won her maiden title at the Indian Wells Open, but injury prevented her from competing at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. She returned a few months later and won the Canadian Open and US Open.

However, that was not the end of her woes as she missed the entire 2020 season due to injury, illness and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Raducanu also hit great heights last year when she won the US Open as a qualifier, but has since struggled with blisters, illness and injury.

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On Tuesday she retired with a lower back injury from her first-round clash against Andreescu at the Italian Open and the Canadian shared some advice.

“I think that you really have to experience it to really know what you need,” she said. “But you’re playing the best players. You really have to have the right nutrition, the right game plan, like physically, mentally, emotionally, everything.

“It’s not easy being on tour. From January to end of October, that’s a long time. You really have to schedule your training properly, your competition, all of that. You also have to know that injuries are a part of the game. But the best thing you can do is try to prevent. I think that’s kind of the advice I can give her.”

After missing the Australian Open at the start of the year, Andreescu returned at the Indian Wells before skipping the Miami Open. She has since played in Stuttgart, Madrid and now Rome.

The 21-year-old admits in the beginning she wanted to every tournament, much like Raducanu, but is better with her scheduling these days.

“I feel like now I know myself and my body more and more, so I’m able to make that decision for myself,” she said.

“But I do have an amazing team, as well, that’s very experienced and has been in the sport for a long time, so they also help me. I feel like I’m the type of player that always wants to go. Maybe just like her. I would love to play every week.

“When they do see me like that, they also help me. They’ll tell me to chill. I’ll take maybe a day off, two days off. Even after the two days off, I play even better than maybe if I played those two days.

“It’s kind of like a back-and-forth thing.”

Bianca Andreescu Emma Raducanu

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