IT’S LIKE BEATLEMANIA. THE WHOLE WORLD WANTS TO KNOW THE NAME OF THE 18 YEAR-OLD FROM KENT
Perhaps it was not quite the Beatles playing their most famous concert at the former shea stadium, adjacent to Flushing Meadows, but there was a taste of it for emma raducanu.
When the new Us Open champion paraded the trophy to fans on saturday evening a certain mania was in the air. The whole world wants to know the name of the 18-year-old from Kent.
several hours later raducanu was quietly seated in the modest confines of the media canteen, mothballed this year due to the small numbers allowed on site. speaking to the tiny knot of reporters from home, she was trying to take it all in.
‘It’s crazy to think, three months ago I was in an exam hall and now I’ve been on the biggest court in the world,’ she summarised, still wide-eyed. What came across in this less formal setting was not just some kind of joyful innocence, but the extent to which she has insulated herself from outside pressures over the past two weeks.
she did not know the Queen had stayed up to watch her match, she was unaware that terrestrial TV had jumped in on the coverage. she had no idea, until someone showed it to her on their phone, how many Instagram followers she now has. The number had risen from 650,000 to over a million in the previous 24 hours.
‘No! What? It’s changed to an M now, not a K!’ she exclaimed. ‘That’s incredible. I can’t believe it. I got an M! Wow.’
Yet by now nobody should confuse what may be the charming naivety of an 18-year-old off the court with the person who wields a racket within the painted white lines.
You cannot go out in the febrile atmosphere in front of 24,000 people in the Us Open final and play like she did without having steel in the soul. The same could be said of her opponent 19-yearold Leylah Fernandez.
some people might have thought that there was weakness — and the usual suspects broadcast the opinion — when raducanu became temporarily overwhelmed during Wimbledon’s fourth round two months previously.
Quietly but firmly, she stated that in the past fortnight she has made her point, and that those who suggested an excess of vulnerability at sW19 were wrong.
‘at Wimbledon, I personally don’t think it was a mental issue. The past week I’ve shown a lot of mental resilience and toughness to face a lot of adversity.
‘To go out on arthur ashe stadium for the first time I was nervous for sure. You could tell in the games where I went an early break down. It took time to adjust. staying calm and in the moment has helped me through.
‘I can’t believe I’m the winner now but you need a lot of mental strength to do it. I think that says something in itself.’
as has become very apparent, she possesses an extraordinary ability to keep her head when trying to execute complex skills under steamhammer pressure. she knows where she gets that from.
‘There were definitely some high-pressure situations. The only pressure I was feeling was a pressure to carry out the plans I had in my mind.
‘My Mum is definitely a very strong person and I’m very inspired by her. I think it’s something I’ve always had from a young age. It’s been a part of my upbringing, thanks to my parents. It has helped throughout my whole life. especially on ashe stadium, you need every ounce of help and experience that you can get.’
It takes strength to compartmentalise the way she did over the past three weeks. That might be the most valuable asset she has when facing the coming tsunami of attention that awaits. another thing she was blissfully unaware of was the fact that she was playing for a winner’s purse of over £1.8million, at a time when her friends are taking out their first student loans as they head off to university. The only occasion she was aware of the cash at stake was when he mislaid one of her most treasured possessions just before her opening qualifying match here. ‘I had no idea of the prize money,’ she said. ‘Before my firstround qualifying round, I lost my airpods three minutes before I was called to court. I was running around looking for them. ‘I have been telling myself before each match, “If you win, you can buy yourself another pair of airpods”. That has been the running joke between us. ‘I just completely switched off from everything, gave my phone away. I haven’t had a chance to catch up. I haven’t checked my phone yet, I’ve got no idea what’s going on. ‘Never in my life I thought her Majesty would watch one of my matches. It’s so special, I can’t believe that it’s happening. ‘I don’t know how it’s going to be when I get home, but I’m really excited to see my family and friends. Whatever happens, I’m enjoying everything and taking it all in.’ The policy of living a
It’s crazy. Three months ago I was in an exam hall. Now I’ve made history
hermit-like existence here was a deliberate one, although she was looking forward to breaking out. She was planning to take yesterday off completely and there would not be a hangover to contend with.
‘I’m not really a drinker. I don’t like it, I’ll stick to chocolate and good food,’ she said. ‘In three weeks I haven’t seen one sight — I’ve just been hiding in my room with Uber Eats,’ she said.
‘But I want to check Wall Street out, the Twin Towers memorial. It’s the 9/11 anniversary this weekend, an incredibly sad day, but everyone has been so strong.
‘We have a lot of good recommendations for food spots. I’m going to try to hit up as many as I can in one day.’
There is also likely to be an obligatory round of US TV chat shows as her celebrity goes coast to coast.
She took time to consider her recent past and future and pointed out that the pandemic may have contributed to her pulling off this astonishing feat.
It was the hiatus caused by the virus, and the decision to complete her A-levels, which saw her play so little and come this summer like a bolt from the blue.
‘In that time I definitely wanted to compete, to get out there. But the circumstances didn’t allow it – there was nothing in the UK in terms of ranking events,’ she added.
‘That was probably the biggest thing. After so long not competing at all, I have been so hungry and excited to perform every time, holding on to every match like it could be my last. I hadn’t played for 16 months. That has definitely helped to drive my motivation.’
The likelihood is that her next tournament will be the postponed high-level event that takes place next month at Indian Wells in the Californian desert, a lavish event owned by Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison.
She will, perhaps for the last time, require a wildcard to enter as her old ranking of 150 was not high enough when entries closed.
This again represents an abrupt shift. ‘Before Wimbledon, I was planning on playing some $25k events in Lisbon, and before here, I was thinking of playing a $125k Challenger somewhere in the States afterwards. But I’m trying not to think about that right now,’ Raducanu explained.
The first time she plays in the UK is likely to be an exhibition at the Royal Albert Hall in late November. Then might come Sports Personality of the Year.
‘I watched when Andy (Murray) and Lewis Hamilton won, and when Dina Asher-Smith was nominated — she went to my school. The school has churned out a lot of good athletes, they gave me a lot of flexibility, I don’t think I’d be here if they hadn’t been so supportive,’ she went on.
This has been another notable feature of Raducanu in the past fortnight — her poise and manners. How quick she has been to express gratitude, from thanking those back home to Virginia Wade for turning up each round to support.
Her values will be tested at times in the coming years — tennis does that to young people. But that can wait. Better now to reflect on three weeks that were spontaneous, innocent and utterly glorious.
Before my first qualifier, I lost my AirPods. I told myself ‘If you win, buy yourself another pair!’