Emma Raducanu set for blockbuster draw as she prepares for WTA Tour return
Emma Radcaunu is preparing to make her return to the WTA Tour and she could face a blockbuster opening round in her first tournament.
Raducanu is already in Australia after deciding to head Down Under early in a bid to be fully acclimatised for the start of the new season.
That is a change of direction for the 2021 US Open champion, who opted against playing in warm-up tournaments ahead of the final major of 2024 and paid the price with a first round exit in New York.
Now she has vowed to spend more time on court and has travelled to Australia with her new fitness coach Yutaka Nakamura.
“I feel like I’m in a pretty good place to get on court as much as I can,” Raducanu said last month.
“I feel really strong. I feel really fit. The only thing I can’t really speak for is I haven’t played that many matches. On the training court I feel amazing. I feel like I’m running around, throwing myself around on the court, but it’s different playing matches.
“I played a few (at Billie Jean King Cup) and I felt good. I felt like I recovered well. I wasn’t tiring in the matches. It would just be good to see as the level increases, and if I have to play more back-to-back, how I’m going to react.
“I think my goal next year is to stay on court longer. This year I came to the top 60 in the world, but I played I think less than 15 events. I know if I’m on court and healthy and competing, I can go even higher and further.
“I think that my athleticism is a strength of mine, but it’s nowhere near its full potential. I’m just looking forward to exploring that further, and I feel ready to commit to doing that.
“While it’s the end of the season for a lot of players, I feel I’m just beginning to kick-start and get things in motion, training really well, training hard, and already building towards next year. I’m not really looking to have any more time off.”
Emma Raducanu News
Emma Raducanu ‘definitely better’ than top ten star claims former Wimbledon champion
Raducanu will be looking to break back into the top 50 of the WTA Rankings when she plays her first tournament at the 2025 ASB Classic WTA 250 event in Auckland, New Zealand, later this month.
The tournament gets underway on December 30 and Raducanu is one of four former Grand Slam champions on the entry list.
Raducanu could face Sloane Stephens in the opening round and she has a good record against the American, while she could also face a rematch with Sofia Kenin, who beat Raducanu at the US Open last August.
There are plenty of dangerous opponents lurking in the latter stages of the event if the Brit can get on a roll with four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka set to play in Auckland, while American Madison Keys, Belgium’s Elise Mertens and rising American star Amanda Anisimova also on the entry list.
She could face a re-match against Lulu Sun after the New Zealander beat Raducanu at Wimbledon, Raducanu is set to be handed a big chance to make a leap up the WTA Rankings at the start of the new season as she has limited points to defending from the opening weeks of 2024.
READ NEXT: The 5 women with biggest WTA Rankings jumps in 2024: ft Emma Raducanu, Naomi Osaka
