Emma Raducanu is out of the Queen’s Club Championships at the quarter-final stage, beaten in straight sets by Qinwen Zheng.
It marked a promising run, but ultimately a disappointing defeat, where she had a real chance to trouble a top-five player.
Alas, it was not to be, and now the Brit must refocus as she prepares for her next event.
Speaking at her post-match press conference, just before Raducanu revealed her relationship with Zheng, she did begin looking beyond the Berlin Open to a return to the All England Club though.
Emma Raducanu shares her new goals ahead of Wimbledon
With her Queen’s tournament now over, naturally, attention was bound to turn to Wimbledon.
Asked about her proximity towards those coveted seeded positions, Emma Raducanu admitted that such a target is no longer her priority.
She admitted: ‘I think being seeded obviously helps in Masters, helps in slams and a lot of tournaments so you’re not playing one of the top players early rounds.
‘But, you know, I think maybe my goals have slightly shifted from being seeded to actually improving my game, and when I play those top players, making it closer and feeling more competitive rather than just feeling, okay, I maybe get to the third round of a slam but then lose comfortably to one of the top. I think I’d rather have a more competitive match, even if that means losing first round, second round, and I think that, to be honest, is how I feel right now.’
Then asked her reasoning behind playing at the Berlin Open, which starts next week, she continued: ‘Yeah, I think, well, I got the opportunity to play a 500-level tournament and it’s extremely strong. I think the cut initially was something like 20.
‘For me, I wanted to have exposure to the best, you know, and see how I fare up, see the ball that’s kind of coming my way so that if it were to happen in a Grand Slam, I would have some sort of rough idea. I’d say that was the reason.
‘And I played Nottingham last year. I have great memories, but this year, I think, yeah, I wanted to try something else.’
Emma Raducanu needs to break through a big barrier at Wimbledon
With the grass-court season now in full swing, Raducanu has enjoyed crucial time to acclimatise to this surface.
Now set to jet off to Berlin, her preparation for Wimbledon is only set to intensify at this WTA 500 event.
Given it is a slightly higher-quality tournament, it represents a huge chance for the Brit to once again face a big name. After all, her inability to really trouble the women’s elite is a barrier she simply must break through either before, or during Wimbledon to enjoy a deep run.
Even if she does sneak into the seeded spots, eventually, if she is to put together a deep run, the 22-year-old will have to overcome a top-ten opponent.
Raducanu has shown her ability to do so against stars like Jessica Pegula, Emma Navarro and Maria Sakkari in the past.
But, these wins come far too infrequently, with defeats to powerhouses like Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek far more regular.
Grass should be a surface where she has a slight upper hand on many of these top players, as a great equaliser. Raducanu needs to capitalise on this, ideally this year, to cement her spot amongst those elite.
