Emma Raducanu on the prospect of winning a Porsche and playing on clay

WTA Tour
Emma Raducanu

Emma Raducanu has given an exclusive interview to one of her latest sponsors Porsche, ahead of her WTA debut on clay court in Stuttgart.

The US Open champion will take on world No.16 Storm Sanders from Australia in her first match, with nine of the world’s top ten players competing in a high-quality field in Germany.

Raducanu admits her challenge in Stuttgart will be huge, but she is relishing the chance to play in an event that hands the winner a huge prize money cheque and a Porsche sports car.

“I am excited to play my first ever WTA tournament on clay,” she said. “It’s nice that it’s the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. I’ve been following the event since I was young and for me it was always the tournament where the winner gets a Porsche.

“It was unique and it has stayed on my mind. Since being on the Tour, I have heard so many good things about the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix. I know it’s one of the most popular tournaments on the calendar which is no wonder – who doesn’t want to win a Porsche!

“It will be challenging but I have already won matches against some of these players in my short experience on tour.

“It would be very motivating to add to my wins against the best players in the world, especially on clay where I have little experience as there aren’t really any clay courts in the UK. This clay season with the French Open as the highlight will be an interesting challenge, but one I am looking forward to.”

Raducanu also spoke about her passion for Formula 1 and motorsport, as she revealed why fast cars are so appealing to her.

“I started early as a 6-year-old girl going karting and it made me feel different from other girls and boys in a very special and positive way,” she added.

“I had so much fun once I started to get good and confident at it. Later motocross was a step up in challenge from go karting. But also lots of fun as let’s be honest, which kid doesn’t like getting dirty in the mud?

“Motorsport is about continual improvement. It’s what I love. And it bears similarities to tennis. On court, you also have to always be concentrated and have to react instinctively to new situations and find quick solutions.

“One invests lots of time and effort preparing and practicing for marginal gains. But the differences in motorsports are far more minmal than in tennis as we’re talking about milliseconds and seconds. And there’s another difference, the consequences in tennis are not so serious when you make a mistake.

“Formula E is fascinating as well because it is an environmentally friendly innovation race series, and I know how much torque and acceleration their electric motors can generate.

“As the cars are not so different to each other, Formular E lends itself to more overtaking than other series. And that’s obviously one of the most exciting parts of motorsport.”

Latest