Former British No 1 on Emma Raducanu’s biggest mistake as he sets bold rankings goal
Former British No 1 Greg Rusedski believes Emma Raducanu is on course to make a return to the top 20 of the rankings in 2026, but he has warned her biggest challenge may come after she reaches that goal.
The 2021 US Open champion has failed to reach a final on the WTA Tour over four years after that remarkable Grand Slam win in New York, with injuries and a succession of coaching changes disrupting her progress since then.
Speaking ahead of the launch of his new podcast Off Court with Greg, Rusedski put some perspective on the progress made by Raducanu over the last four years and painted a positive picture of her prospects heading into 2026.
“She went from zero to superstar too quickly and that was a challenge,” began Rusedski, speaking exclusively to Tennis365.
“Raducanu did the hardest thing in tennis first. She won a Grand Slam. That can never be taken away from her.
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“Then you get astronomical fame and sponsorship that anybody in their right mind would have taken, but the mistake she made was the coaching situation. So many changes didn’t help her.
“I know this has been said before, but you need consistency in your coach and where you are going. She didn’t have that.
“The reason she is back in the top 30 now is she has had some consistency with her coaches in recent months, starting with Mark Petchey coming into her team back in March and then with Francisco Roig coming on board, who has worked with Rafael Nadal. She needs that consistency with her coaching now.”
The question over where Raducanu can take her career next is an ongoing debate, with Rusedski setting her a rankings goal that seems realistic.
“She has got back to where she is in the rankings and has not played a full schedule,” he added. “So I’d expect her to get back into the top 20 next year and the challenge then is to go beyond that and win titles.
“Tennis players tend to be on a journey. They start by winning smaller events, work their way up the rankings and then they challenge for Grand Slams when they reach the top level.
“Raducanu now has to win tournaments. She needs to get to finals. She hasn’t done that yet and she needs to start building by winning the lesser events on the main tour.”
Raducanu pulled out of exhibition events in America this month as she is focusing on a return to action at the United Cup in Australia at the end of this month.
She is also on course to achieve her stated goal of earning a seeded for the first Grand Slam of the year at the Australian Open.
