Wimbledon 2021: Emma Raducanu is 'feeling better' after retiring from fourth-round match
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'It's been the best week of my life' - Raducanu
Wimbledon 2021 on the BBC |
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Venue: All England Club Dates: 28 June-11 July |
Coverage: Live across BBC TV, radio and online with extensive coverage on BBC iPlayer, Red Button, Connected TVs and mobile app. Full details here |
Emma Raducanu says the "whole experience" of her run to the Wimbledon fourth round "caught up" with her but she is "feeling better" after Monday's mid-match retirement.
The 18-year-old Briton said she "started to breathe heavily and felt dizzy" after the first set against Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia.
She described not being able to carry on as "the hardest thing in the world".
"I will cherish everything we have achieved together this week," she said.
Raducanu was trailing 4-6 0-3 to Tomljanovic when she became unwell, leaving the court before it was announced she would not be returning.
Raducanu said on Tuesday she began to feel ill after some "super intense rallies" during the first set.
"I found it very difficult to regulate my breathing. It was emphasised my some long rallies we had towards the end of the first set which made it tough for me to keep my composure and breathing in check," she told Sue Barker on BBC TV.
"At the beginning of the second set was when I was struggling with it the most and I called the trainer.
"I don't know what caused it, I think it was a combination of everything that has gone on behind the scenes and the accumulation of the excitement and the buzz."
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Raducanu had only made her WTA Tour debut in June, but beat two top-50 players on her way to the last 16.
She said her whirlwind week at SW19 had been "the best of my life".
"It's a great learning experience for me and a great step forward and hopefully next time I will be better prepared," she said.
"I'm doing well and I'm feeling a lot better this morning. I'm very disappointed I couldn't finish the match."
Anne Keothavong, who captains Raducanu in the Billie Jean King Cup, said the teenager will "come back better prepared and stronger".
"It was a difficult situation for her to be in, and for everyone to witness, but she'll be just fine," she told BBC TV.
"It was always going to be a difficult match given the hype and the buzz around it, but she'll learn from this.
"It's been a fantastic Wimbledon debut for her, and next year she'll come better prepared and stronger for it."
Wimbledon 2021: How British teenager Raducanu lit up the first week of Wimbledon
Raducanu and Tomljanovic did not start their match until 20:00 BST, after it was scheduled last on Court One following a five-set thriller between Alexander Zverev and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
In a statement, Wimbledon said: "The scheduling of the order of play each day at the Championships is a complex operation, and although we take great care when scheduling matches and allocating courts on a daily basis, it is not an exact science.
"All decisions are made with fairness and the best interests of the tournament, players, spectators and our worldwide broadcast audience at heart, but the unpredictable nature of the length of matches and the British weather can and will cause disruption to any schedule."
Raducanu said she had no problem with the scheduling, adding: "I was prepared to go out there whatever time of day I was required to.
"I was so excited. To have the opportunity to go on Court One was something I appreciated and relished."
Keothavong, who brought Raducanu into the Billie Jean King Cup - formerly Fed Cup - squad earlier in the year, said the teenager would be keen to return to the court as soon as possible.
"Everyone is going to want a piece of her, but she's got good people around her who will do whatever they can to make sure her feet stay on the ground," she said.
"She's a sensible young girl, and she still hasn't played a full year on the tour yet, so for her she'll want to get right back at it. But it's a lot to take in, and we do have to remind ourselves that she's still very young and it is still all very new."
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