Raducanu Still Searching for Identity and Game After AO Loss to Potapova

Emma Raducanu’s Australian Open came to a disappointing end on Day 4 as she was knocked off by Anastasia Potapova, 7-6(3) 6-2. The 2021 US Open champion admitted she felt a little undercooked, having started her pre-season training late due to a foot injury. It’s understandable that she didn’t quite feel herself. But her post-match comments make one wonder about the state of her game.

23-year-old Raducanu says she still hasn’t been able to play the type of tennis she believes she needs to be playing. Here’s how she described it:

“I think I want to be playing a different way, and I think the misalignment with how I’m playing right now and how I want to be playing is something that I just want to work on,” Raducanu said. “I think there are definitely pockets of me playing how I want to play, and it comes out in flashes, which is a positive, and maybe more than certain times in my career in the last few years. But it’s not how I want to be, like, consistently every day.”

The current world No.29 says she needs time to figure things out. She has been searching for better form ever since she became the first player to ever win a Grand Slam title from qualifying at the US Open. In her 13 Grand Slam main draw appearances since then, Raducanu has reached the second week of only one, at Wimbledon in 2024.

Full credit to Raducanu for overcoming two wrist surgeries and a significant drop outside of the Top 300 in 2024. She had a very solid 2025, jumping 30 points in the rankings to finish inside the Top-30, her best year-end ranking since 2021.

But Raducanu, through all those experiences, admits that she is still not playing the type of tennis she wants to play.

“It’s not going to fall into place straight away, but the more I work on how I want to be playing, it will be more of my identity every time I step onto the court,” she said. “I need to work at that, but it’s not going to happen overnight.”

Pressed to explain specific details, Raducanu said she wants to simplify and play with pace and precision, rather than thinking too much about variation.

“I just want to hit the ball, like, to the corners and hard,” she said. “I feel like I’m doing all this variety, and it’s not, like, doing what I want it to do. I need to just work on, you know, playing in a way more similar to how I was playing when I was younger.

“I always just changed direction, took the ball early, and went for it.”

Raducanu hints that working on new skills has actually altered her playing style, and she feels that simplifying her game will help her be a better version of herself on the court.

“I think I do have the ability to do many things on the court, but I feel like as I’m learning all those skills, it’s like I need to stick to my guns a bit as well and work on that,” she said. “For me, it’s pretty simple.”