After losing in the first round of the Madrid Open, Emma Raducanu said she was “mentally and emotionally exhausted.” On Wednesday, the British No. 6 lost 6-2 6-2 to qualifier Maria Lourdes Carle after making a great start to the clay season. She also mentioned how her harsh schedule and her coach’s absence had a negative impact.
Raducanu lost to Carle in her most lopsided match of the year, winning just four games as the latter won her maiden WTA 1000 main draw match. The world No. 82 player easily won the match because the 21-year-old looked worn out on the court, made too many mistakes, and failed to capitalize on break point possibilities.
Following her successful weeks at the Billie Jean King Cup and the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, the 2021 US Open winner acknowledged after the match that exhaustion had an impact. Raducanu remarked on Wednesday, “I would say the last few weeks have been a lot.”
I’ve continued since the Billie Jean King Cup. It’s been back-to-back, and I’m glad I could assist the team out in the BJK Cup. After playing inside for the previous month, I traveled straight to Stuttgart without stopping, and now I’m trying to adjust to the very different weather here. I’ve been playing very well overall, but there are a lot of things going on that have made it very difficult to fully compete today.
Iain Bates of the LTA filled in for Raducanu’s coach Nick Cavaday, who was conspicuously absent from her box in Madrid. And while he was preoccupied with other obligations, the world No. 221 missed having her reliable mentor nearby. She went on, “Yeah I did, and that kind of sucked because I missed him being here.”
“However, it was great to have Iain here who was able to sort of drop everything and come out at the last minute.” I suppose it’s not always simple, but things don’t always go as planned, so I guess I wasn’t very good at handling things today.
With the clay season off to a scorching start, Raducanu is now aiming to take some well-earned recuperation. For the first time since her 2021 US Open championship victory, she won four straight matches at the BJK Cup in Stuttgart. After working nonstop for the past month, she said, “I think I’m just going to take a few days off and rest a little bit.”
For two weeks prior to the Billie Jean King Cup, I trained extremely hard, and after that, I traveled directly to Stuttgart and then to this location. I believe I will simply take a brief break. I believe it was evident from my performance today that I was emotionally and psychologically spent, and that’s all.
Raducanu ran out of petrol in Madrid, but she continued on in Stuttgart. “I was attempting to persevere,” she continued. I just couldn’t push through today after going through Stuttgart. It’s unfortunate that I was having such a great time on the court and then something happened, but I suppose that’s just how ruthless this sport is.
Her opponent, an Argentinean, gained from her more experience on clay and entered fresh from winning the WTA 125 tournament the previous week. She is a really skilled clay-court player, and in my opinion, she simply possesses a great deal more expertise and experience in this area. That’s the way it is, Raducanu said. “I mean, credit to her; she played a great match and I definitely didn’t.”
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