Laura Robson thinks there is a simple formula to Emma Raducanu achieving short-term success and that's simply staying healthy and competing regularly.
The way Raducanu kicked off her US Open campaign, some went as far as to state that she was looking like the same player that won the tournament in 2021. But after losing a total of six games through her first two matches, the world No. 34 stumbled upon an inspired Elena Rybakina and got annihilated 1-6 2-6 by the Kazakh.
Since then, Raducanu has drawn some criticism from the British public after ditching her plans to compete at next week's Billie Jean King Cup Finals and instead accepting a main draw wildcard into the WTA 500 tournament in Seoul.
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Robson: Raducanu staying healthy and playing every week would make a huge difference
Raducanu was up against a very in-form Rybakina. You can come away from that match feeling upbeat about what Emma can improve on to challenge the cleanest hitters. And Rybakina was seeing the ball like a basketball, hitting everything in the sweet spot. For sure, a tough opponent to come up against but exciting to know that she's got the next few months to get better, to keep working. And that's what she's doing on the practice court," Robson wrote for Sky Sports.
After Seoul, Raducanu will play at the WTA 1000 tournaments in Beijing and Wuhan. Considering how much the British tennis player loves the Asian swing, she will probably also look to play in the Ningbo, Guangzhou, or the Hong Kong tournaments.
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Being able to stay healthy and therefore play every week makes a huge difference. To give yourself the best chance of being seeded at Grand Slams, to know you won't play another seed till the third round," Robson added.
Raducanu appeared in only one WTA tournament after last year's US Open. In case she does well in the upcoming period, she could easily improve her current ranking and possibly even finish the year ranked inside the top-20.
