Raducanu and friendships within the WTA: "It's very difficult to truly open up to other players"

Andrés Tomás Rico | 24 Jul 2025 | 21.03

Raducanu and the harsh reality on the WTA circuit: "It is very difficult to truly open up with other players." Photo: Getty Images

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Emma Raducanu is returning to where she belongs. The British tennis player seems to be reclaiming her best game after some forgettable years. At Wimbledon, she showed she can compete against anyone, going toe-to-toe with Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one. And now, ranked 46th in the world, she lands in the United States aiming to maintain the level of consistency displayed, and who knows, perhaps even to surprise.

At the WTA Washington, she defeated the 7th seed, Marta Kostyuk (7-5, 6-3), and today she left no chances for Naomi Osaka (6-4, 6-2), who has also faced some irregular years. But before her match against the Japanese player, Raducanu talked about how challenging it is to form friendships with other players she competes with every week.

Cases like that of Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa are exceptions in a circuit where competitiveness and a tight schedule hinder the formation of stable friendships among players. Raducanu discussed this in statements collected by Tennis365.

Competing and having friendship are not compatible

"I think when we are on tour, it's really hard to truly open up to other players you compete against. I have a few friends on the circuit, but playing against them adds another dimension," confessed the champion of the 2021 US Open.

However, she doesn't give much importance to this fact. On the contrary, she prefers to avoid it: "I have very good friends at home whom I can trust and talk to, but other than that, you know, I don't think I have that on the circuit. For me, it's just harder to compete against a person I'm friends with," said Raducanu who is not here to make friends; she just wants to win again.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Raducanu y las amistades dentro de la WTA: "Es muy difícil abrirse de verdad con otras jugadoras"