Week 43 - WTA 250 - Cluj-Napoca, Romania Hard

indiana · Tennis legend

Week 43 - WTA 250 - Cluj-Napoca, Romania Hard

Peter too · Tennis legend

Emma is next down to play in Linz starting on 8th Nov.

kundalini · Specialist Reporter + Intermediate Club Player

At no stage this week did Emma ever look as though she had come to terms with the bounce on this indoor court. She got away with it against Hercog and Bogdan because of the difference in class but having watched some of Halep's matches and quite a few others, Emma wasn't one of the top performers this week even before today's disintegration, unlike the US Open where she was the best player in the tournament. To give an example, her returning of 2nd serves was horrible, so many landed miles beyond the baseline.

I prefer that she go for her shots rather than let her opponent dominate. I'd like to see her attack the net far more often than she does. Perhaps deploy more drop shots and use the backhand slice to change it up from time to time. Use these smaller events to practice shots that might help her in the Grand Slams.

dodrade · Futures qualifying

Peter too wrote:
Emma is next down to play in Linz starting on 8th Nov.

How does the court play there? Could she still make the top 20 with a decent run in Linz?

-- Edited by dodrade on Friday 29th of October 2021 08:17:42 PM

HarryGem · Club Coach

PaulM wrote:
Should have closed that last game. Some good points but a lot of pretty poor play. Kostyuk stayed on the front foot throughout, nice and aggressive, very clean. She's due a big breakthrough, be interesting to see how she gets on against Halep.

To be honest the mess Emma made of the first game sort of set the tone. She never recovered.

-- Edited by PaulM on Friday 29th of October 2021 05:33:47 PM

Sums it up well. No getting away from the fact that this was a very poor performance. It is hard to remember just how inexperienced Emma is at this level and I think it showed today. Wasn't much fight and looked a bit clueless I thought.

Despite her US Open win in reality she is probably technically over-ranked.

Still it is one match but I hope her confidence isn't too affected. I wonder if she will withdraw from Linz?

On another player Kontaveit is playing fantastic tennis right now. 4th final in two months. Shows just how important getting the right coach is.

Julia Carrot · All-time great

Halep is eviscerating Kostyuk right now

emmsie69 · Top national player

HarryGem wrote:
PaulM wrote:
Should have closed that last game. Some good points but a lot of pretty poor play. Kostyuk stayed on the front foot throughout, nice and aggressive, very clean. She's due a big breakthrough, be interesting to see how she gets on against Halep.

To be honest the mess Emma made of the first game sort of set the tone. She never recovered.

-- Edited by PaulM on Friday 29th of October 2021 05:33:47 PM
Sums it up well. No getting away from the fact that this was a very poor performance. It is hard to remember just how inexperienced Emma is at this level and I think it showed today. Wasn't much fight and looked a bit clueless I thought.
Despite her US Open win in reality she is probably technically over-ranked.
Still it is one match but I hope her confidence isn't too affected. I wonder if she will withdraw from Linz?
On another player Kontaveit is playing fantastic tennis right now. 4th final in two months. Shows just how important getting the right coach is.

FWIW I don't think Emma will be concerned. She has her head screwed on right and seems to recognise that she has basically done everything backwards. Anyway no matter where her career goes, she'll always be a Grand Slam winner and the 1st qualifier of either sex to go right through the draw. If she walked away tomorrow, she will still have acheived an amazing feat. Personally I think she will come into her own 2023.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

She said she was very fatigued, that everything just caught up with her a bit.

I wasnt physically feeling 100 per cent and was quite tired and lethargic today."

She said she felt it in practice that day.

(It's in a lot of papers but here's The Standard:

www.standard.co.uk/sport/tennis/emma-raducanu-transylvania-open-result-reaction-marta-kostyuk-b963387.html

I don't think it's an issue at all. I wonder if it slightly got to her that it was Marta, and she certainly looked blank, and wanting it to be over and done with. It must have been upsetting not to be able to play your best (or close) when it's a tournament that's personally important to you. But it's just one of those things.....the merest of hiccups

Peter too · Tennis legend

Emma beat two players just outside the top 100 before losing the QF. That would have been considered a huge achievement before Nottingham. She has only played in 9 events this year with several large gaps. She went out in the 1st round three times. Her game should settle down and become more consistent once she starts playing more regularly.

the addict · Tennis legend

Yes, CD, I've read that in a couple of places. It's hardly surprising after the whirlwind few weeks.

the addict · Tennis legend

Julia Carrot wrote:
Halep is eviscerating Kostyuk right now

I'm glad it wasn't Emma - 0 & 1 would have been hard for Emma to take

christ · Futures level

Peter too wrote:
Emma beat two players just outside the top 100 before losing the QF. That would have been considered a huge achievement before Nottingham.

Agreed. This makes headlines like "Raducanu crashes out" (The Times) all the more unfortunate.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Well, to be fair, she did crash out. I don't have a problem with the headline. As long as the actual article isn't all doom and gloom.

GAMEOVER · Satellite level

Kostyuk at world no. 55 is currently the highest ranked player not to have reached a WTA singles final.

GAMEOVER · Satellite level

After Virginia Wade won the 1968 US Open she too struggled the following year. That is because the hunter becomes the hunted. Even if Emma was never to win another tournament she will be forever in an elite club of British women players. Along with Jones, Wade and Barker they are all Grand Singles champions in the Open era. In the post 2nd world war pre Open era you can also add the names of Mortimer, Brasher and Truman. Ann Jones is unique in winning titles in both the pre Open era and Open era. Pat Ward and Angela Buxton were both finalists in the 1950's. So it's not a club with too many members.