Raducanu complains about being scheduled to play so late: "It doesn't make sense"

Jose Morón | 18 Jan 2026 | 09.28

Raducanu complains about being scheduled to play so late in Australia: "It makes no sense." Photo: Getty

Streaming French Open Women live tennis

🎾 Elina Svitolina vs Marta Kostyuk

Sign up with Bet365 here
Make your first deposit of at least €5
Go to the “Live” section and watch every match

Watch the match on Bet365

The press conference given yesterday by Emma Raducanu in Melbourne has received considerable attention worldwide due to the peculiar complaint made by the British player. Scheduled as the second night session at the Margaret Court Arena, after the Bublik-Brooksby match, Emma complained that it “doesn't make sense” to have a women's match scheduled so late in a Grand Slam event like this Australian Open.

Although it may sound like a joke, it isn't. Raducanu took the opportunity when questioned by a journalist to express her feelings about the scheduling that a Grand Slam tournament can have, where the Australian tournament always schedules one men's match and one women's match during the prime viewing time. Unlike Roland Garros, which only schedules a men's match, the Australian Open plays with the timings starting from 7 pm local time to feature a men's and a women's match in different orders. Sometimes women play first, and sometimes it's the men.

Raducanu's complaint about the women's match schedules at Slams

The journalist at the press conference questioned her on how one prepares to go out to play so late, potentially taking the court between 10 pm and 11 pm at night. Raducanu's response didn't leave anyone indifferent.

“It's very complicated to organize women's schedules after a match that could potentially end in five sets. For me, it doesn't make any sense. After seeing it, my reaction was like 'Oh, I'm playing late.' You just have to deal with it and adjust your day to that schedule. Today, I will train at that time and see how it goes. I think I've never been in that situation before. Maybe only once when I played the US Open semis. Besides that, I think I've never played that late. For me, it's a new experience. If I keep playing this sport for a long time, I will find myself in that situation more often, so it will be something to learn from.”, replied the tennis player.

Playing the best of 3 sets instead of the best of 5, with the same benefits as the men in a Grand Slam, such a complaint creates a certain amazement and is not fully understood. It's as if men, in addition to making a greater effort by potentially playing five sets, could finish past midnight, and women couldn't. She does herself a disservice with that kind of comment. When Raducanu says it “doesn't make sense,” perhaps she should apply it to herself regarding her comments in this press conference.