Emma Raducanu is ranked at No. 60 in the world, with the former U.S. Open champion’s WTA Ranking set to take a further hit after her Indian Wells defeat earlier this month
Emma Raducanu will be keen to bounce back to form this week (
Image: Getty Images)
Emma Raducanu has been grappling with a challenging period on the tennis court, suffering losses in six of her last seven matches.
The former U.S. Open champion was ousted in the first round at Indian Wells by Moyuka Uchijima earlier this month, and she’s looking to regain her footing in Miami. Raducanu’s recent slump has led to a dip in her WTA Rankings, sliding from No. 55 to No. 60.
Her early exit at the hands of Uchijima at Indian Wells, where she had made it to the third round last year, resulted in a significant loss of ranking points. However, the Miami Open offers a silver lining for Raducanu to reclaim those lost points, especially since she missed out on the tournament last year due to an injury.
She is set to face Sayaka Ishii in the opening round of the competition on Wednesday. Most of Raducanu’s WTA Ranking points were accumulated during the previous year’s grass court season, which saw her reach the fourth round at Wimbledon (240 points), semifinals at the Nottingham Open (98 points), and quarterfinals in Eastbourne (108 points).
With the Billie Jean King Cup also on the horizon, Raducanu has a chance to regain her form ahead of a packed schedule. The British No. 2 will be keen to makeup for her surprising first-round defeat at the Madrid Open last year, where she was soundly defeated by Maria Lourdes Carle, earning a mere 10 points.
Raducanu will have the opportunity to defend her points at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany. The 22-year-old garnered 108 points at the event last year after making it to the quarterfinals.
Raducanu has slipped down the WTA Rankings ( (Image: Getty))
She will then head back to America, where she can build on her performance at the Mubadala City DC Open in Washington. Here, she regained her form with another quarter-final finish (108 points) before proceeding to the U.S. Open.
Despite her previous success at the competition, Raducanu’s attempt to reclaim her title fell apart in the opening round last year. She was defeated by Sofia Kenin, a result she is determined to improve upon this time.
Following this, Raducanu can choose whether to participate in the Asian leg of the WTA 500 season. Last year, she earned considerable recognition when she reached the quarter-finals of the Korea Open (108 points).
Reflecting on her game at Indian Wells, Raducanu said: “I’ll need to improve starting the point. That’s a big part of tennis. I can do that a lot better. I could improve being more aggressive and having a better quality of shot going forward into the court. I could improve every area of my game after today’s performance.”
