Emma Raducanu has spent four years trying to outrun the shadow of New York, but 2025 has finally offered a different kind of storyline — one written in smaller steps, steadier choices and far fewer medical updates.
Her rise back to No 29 in the world, and once again Britain’s top-ranked woman, isn’t flashy. It’s measured. Quietly earned. She fell just short of a seeded berth at the US Open, yet the number beside her name feels less important than the manner in which she has climbed. The tennis has tightened. The confidence, once brittle, now feels lived-in rather than borrowed.
One turning point has been Francisco Roig. Nadal’s long-time lieutenant has given Raducanu something she hasn’t enjoyed since her breakthrough — proper continuity. The footwork looks sharper, the shot selection less hurried, and the sense of a long-term plan more believable than at any point since 2021. The injuries that wrecked her 2023 — double wrist surgery and an ankle operation before she’d even turned 21 — have finally stopped dictating the plot.
The Pundits Who Have Watched Her Struggle Now See a Player Rebuilding With Purpose
Jonathan Overend didn’t bother to sugarcoat the turbulence. “I hope she really feels positive, because this has been a genuine year of progress for Emma Raducanu, with real hope she can get back to where she once was,” he said. “Imagine if she’d never won the US Open — she ended 2023 outside the top 300 after double wrist surgery.”
If that sounds stark, his view of her present is anything but. “Now she’s hovering around the top 30, on the brink of Grand Slam seedings, with the potential to go higher. By any measure, that’s remarkable progress across two seasons. I think the strides she’s made are outstanding.”
Tim Henman sees the same trajectory, and he credits the stability she’s long been denied. “She’s moving in the right direction, and we’ve all said in the past she needed continuity,” he noted. “With Francisco Roig in her team, they looked to be building something genuinely solid. I’m pleased that partnership continues into 2026. His experience is immense.”
Laura Robson, perhaps the most empathetic voice among the trio, focused on something more intangible — the pressure that has trailed Raducanu since she shocked the world as a teenager. “I can’t imagine how heavy the pressure must have felt, with everyone expecting the same results,” she admitted. “It’s very difficult to deliver that when you’re healthy — never mind coming back from injury. We saw at the US Open that she looks more relaxed. She played a bit of golf in New York and is just enjoying her time on court, which is by far the most important thing. You forget how young she is.”
A Short Break Now, a Big Year Next
Raducanu cut her season short after a physically laboured exit in Ningbo — a reminder that her recovery isn’t linear. She’ll use the off-season to reset before what looks like a defining 2026 campaign, starting with her United Cup debut alongside Jack Draper.
Last year’s Slams brought a brutal run of early collisions with Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina — defeats that said more about the ranking gods than Raducanu’s ceiling. A top-32 seeding in Melbourne would spare her that immediate gauntlet. More importantly, it would give her something she hasn’t had for a long while: a clear runway.
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