Emma Raducanu admits the feeling she had against Veronika Kudermetova which was ‘not nice’ despite her win

Emma Raducanu has advanced to the round of 16 at the Italian Open, where she will face Coco Gauff, following a hard-fought three-set win over Veronika Kudermetova.

The former US Open champion came through a tough match 5-7, 6-0, 6-1 after earlier wins against Maya Joint and Jil Teichmann. Despite the victory, Raducanu admitted to feeling uncomfortable during key moments of the match.

“For me, the best part of today was how I responded after losing the first set, especially after serving for it,” Raducanu said post-match. “At 5-4 I played a pretty poor game. I felt a lot of pressure on her returns and ended up red-lining my shots.”

She continued, “It wasn’t a nice feeling. I didn’t know where to serve and felt a bit lost. But I’m proud of how I didn’t let the match slip away. That shows real progress compared to my past performances.”

Raducanu’s comeback win took two hours and 32 minutes, showing significant mental resilience. Meanwhile, her next opponent, fourth seed Coco Gauff, defeated Magda Linette 7-5, 6-3 in her third-round match.

While Gauff won their only previous meeting, Raducanu expressed quiet confidence, noting recent improvements in her game.

“I’m happy with the variety I have on my shots,” she said. “I’ve started returning from different positions, especially deeper, which helps me get into the rally better.”

However, she acknowledged areas for improvement: “I still need to be quicker moving out of the corners and sharper after my serve—just getting into the split step better.”

The matchup with Gauff promises a compelling clash between two US Open champions still forging their paths on the WTA Tour.