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 French player Caroline Garcia - ranked number 55 in the world - but reckons the loss is part of her learning curve towards the top of the women’s game.
She said: “It will make me a better player because they (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.
“Why is there any pressure? I'm still 19. Like, it's a joke. I literally won a slam.
“Going back to New York (for her US Open defence), 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. I mean, for me, everything is learning. I'm embracing every single moment that is thrown at me.”
And while she made no excuses for the loss to in-form Garcia, Raducanu did highlight her injury-interrupted preparation for the Championships.
She said: “I declared myself fully fit when I walked out onto the court on the first day but 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.”
