Emma Raducanu lays out her path to US Open title defence

US Open
Emma Raducanu

World No 10 Emma Raducanu has laid out her expected path to a US Open title defence.

Raducanu has revealed that she will enter the returning Citi Open, staged in Washington DC.

Her success at last year’s US Open has effectively ruled out any likelihood of the same preparation.

Raducanu begins her US Open swing in DC and has also laid her intention to enter the back-to-back WTA 1000 events, the National Bank Open in Toronto followed by the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, ahead of her return to Flushing Meadows.

The British No 1 is set to make her Toronto and Cincinnati debuts but has already banked experience on American hard court WTA 1000 events at Indians Wells and in Miami.

Raducanu has opted to sit out much of July, when the WTA’s schedule is dominated by minor European clay court tournaments.

She feels a return to court in August will give her a good chance of being at her best when she returns to New York.

“I’m thrilled that the Citi Open is bringing back its WTA tournament and I’m really excited to compete on the courts in DC for the first time,” said Raducanu.

“The past year has been an unforgettable time in my tennis career and I look forward to adding new memories in Washington this summer.”

Raducanu said that her preparation this season will be different given the amount of big match tennis she has now played.

“I want to start my preparations on the hard courts. I think that Washington would be a great place to do that.

“Last year I played a lot of matches leading up…I just wanted to give myself a chance really.

“Going back to New York, it’s going to be cool because I have got a lot of experiences playing on big courts, playing with people in the stadium, playing with the spotlight on you.

“I don’t mind that. I mean, for me, everything is learning. I’m embracing every single moment that is thrown at me.”

The big names are not expected to be in action in Granby and Cleveland the week before the final Major of the year.

Emma Raducanu

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