’IT WILL MAKE ME A BETTER PLAYER’

BY ANDY DUNN

DEFIANT Emma Raducanu insisted she will bounce back from her surprise second round Wimbledon defeat, declaring: “I’ll just get better.”

The US Open champion was beaten in straight sets by France’s Caroline Garcia, ranked No.55 in the world, but reckons the loss is part of her learning curve.

Raducanu said: “It will make me a better player because the other top players are just highlighting all my weaknesses.

“Then when you do it on a big court like that, it’s definitely magnified.

“It’s just great for me to get all these lessons at such a young age so that when I’m in my mid-20s, I’ll have those issues or little glitches in my game sorted. I’ll just get better.”

And after the 6-3, 6-3 disappointment on Centre Court, Raducanu dismissed suggestions she is struggling to cope with the pressures of being such a high-profile player at such a young age.

She smiled: “I am 19 years old. Yes, I have had attention.

“But I’m a Slam champion, so no-one’s going to take that away from me. If anything, the pressure is on those who haven’t done that.

“Going back to New York, it’s going to be cool because I have got a lot of experiences playing on big courts, playing with people in the stadium, playing with the spotlight on you.

“I don’t mind that. For me, everything is learning. I’m embracing every moment that is thrown at me.”

And while she made no excuses for the loss to Garcia, Raducanu did highlight her injuryinterrupted preparation.

She said: “I’ve played seven hours of tennis in a month. I think to even compete with these girls at this level and win a round is a pretty good achievement.”