Emma Raducanu has discussed her break from social media after the Australian Open.
The Brit suffered a second-round loss to fellow young star Coco Gauff at Melbourne Park after recovering from an ankle injury suffered in the lead-up to the event. The 20-year-old has been very prominent on social media since she achieved superstar status after winning the 2021 US Open.
She has become the face of several prominent brands and is without a doubt one of the world’s most marketable athletes. But following her opening win at the Indian Wells Masters, the Bromley local opened up on the benefits of her decision to step back from social media in January.
“After AO (Australian Open) I deleted WhatsApp and Instagram off my phone and after that, I've been living under my own little rock," she said. "I felt like sometimes you go through patches where you just want to zone in on yourself and I was very content with my life without it. I've learned regardless of what you do, if you do good, if you do bad, people are going to come at you regardless."
In Raducanu's first match since Melbourne, she delivered a composed performance, despite not being at 100 percent, to complete a 6-2, 6-3 victory in one hour and 22 minutes. She was seen practising ahead of the match with strapping on both wrists and was also suffering with a bout of tonsillitis prior to arriving in California.
As a result, she withdrew from last week's event in Texas and an exhibition tournament earlier this week, leading to doubts surrounding her fitness. But post-match Raducanu stated that she's managing her physical fitness and opened up on her less than ideal preparation for yesterday evening's match.
"I didn't feel too good this morning," she told BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra. "I'm just so happy with the way I fought and dealt with the circumstances. I just woke up feeling not great to be honest.
"I felt quite ill so I'm just happy to have played the match and then to win it despite how I felt today. Today before the match, I did not warm up. Two minutes before I was called I was sleeping in the treatment room so I'm just proud to have got out there and then won."
After recording just her third win of the year, Raducanu will face Polish star Magda Linette for a place in the third round. "It was a good match," said Raducanu.
"Danka is an extremely difficult opponent. I was expecting a battle and I am just glad to get through. I am happy I stuck in. Being a break down is obviously difficult, but mentally I just took it one point at a time."
