“It still hasn’t really sunk in, but occasionally I’ll remember that I won the US Open,” Emma Raducanu said after beating Leylah Fernandez in the US Open final in 2021 at the age of just 18. More than three years have gone by and Raducanu hasn’t been in another Slam final. While injuries have been the major roadblocks in her career, the constant coaching changes haven’t helped, bringing a lot of instability to her camp. Once ranked 10th in the world, Raducanu – the first British woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since 1977 – has now slipped down to the 60th spot in the WTA rankings. However, in the ongoing Miami Open, she secured the third top 10 victory of her career when she beat the current World No. 10 Emma Navarro in the Round of 32. How big is this victory for the Brit?
With her victory over Navarro, Raducanu has now entered the third round of a WTA 1000 tournament for the first time in her career. Throughout that 2-hour-53 minute battle, the 21-year-old fought a lot of nervy moments. Raducanu even received treatment for a foot injury before the deciding set. In the latter stages of the third set, Raducanu’s serve was broken and Navarro was serving for the match before the Brit broke back. She was then able to find an extra push to win the tie-break.
It might only be an R64 victory, but for Raducanu, it meant more than her 2021 US Open triumph. It has been a tough couple of months for Emma who currently has a win-loss record of just 5-6 in 2025. While drawing a comparison of this win with the one at the 2021 US Open final, she said, “Well, I mean, I would say not necessarily more in terms of magnitude, but I would say emotionally, just a lot more aware of all of the suffering as well, because, you know, when I won the US Open, I just won 10 matches in straight sets.”
Raducanu further continued, “It was, I mean, I didn’t have, like, the losses, the downs, the months of, like, losing streaks. I think to come out of it now, it does, yeah, I’d say it means a lot more than certain matches at the US Open, yeah.“
It was her first meeting with Emma Navarro on the WTA Tour. “That was number one [win of the year] because Emma is a top-10 opponent. Haven’t beaten a top-10 opponent this year. That’s my first one and she made me work so hard for every single point,” Raducanu remarked.
Remarkable from Raducanu@EmmaRaducanu down 1-3 in the third set, storms back to defeat Navarro 7-6(6), 2-6, 7-6(3)!#MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/Yl6laOBBOg
— wta (@WTA) March 21, 2025
This exciting battle drew several reactions from the tennis world. Serena Williams’ former coach, Rennae Stubbs had predicted this potential upset during the third set of the match. After the match, even Navarro’s compatriot Jessica Pegula said she was happy for Emma Raducanu. “When she’s playing at a top level, she belongs with the top players,” said Pegula.
Next up for the Brit is another American, McCartney Kessler. This will be her first meeting with Kessler as well. Can Raducanu keep her dream run intact in Miami? Time will tell!
However, her goal now is to get to a place where she can feel a lot more stable with her surroundings. We saw some familiar faces in her box recently. Who were those?
Andy Murray’s former coach spotted in Emma Raducanu’s box
Nick Cavaday stepped down from his coaching role in Emma Raducanu‘s team just after the 2025 AO. He cited health issues as the reason behind his decision. Following that, Raducanu brought in the Slovak coach Vladimir Platenik on a trial basis. However, even that partnership didn’t last long. What was the reason behind this split?
Well, Platenik recently came up with an explanation saying his very brief partnership with the Brit ended because she “was feeling stressed and under a lot of pressure.” In an interview with BBC Sport, he also said that he was “absolutely surprised” but “not angry” when Raducanu called an end to their partnership after only two weeks.
After that, we saw Jane O’Donoghue in Raducanu’s coaching during her first match in the Miami Open, and then in the second match, Mark Petchey was seen there. Petchey previously worked with Raducanu, before her historic US Open triumph.
Although it’s not clear whether either O’Donoghue or Petchey will commit to a longer-term agreement with the former number 10, Raducanu did speak about these new additions after the match. “I came here with someone and it didn’t work out, but we put in some great work. I have good friends here with me, who know my game and know me so well – it’s about trusting your gut and trusting your feeling,” the 21-year-old said.
Her representatives described Petchey as a “familiar face” and he was seen offering coaching advice to Raducanu from her box as well. Can this new partnership bring success to the Brit in Miami? Share your thoughts in the comment below.
The post “All of the Suffering”- Emma Raducanu Gives Her Miami Open Victory Over Navarro a Special Edge Over US Open Triumph appeared first on EssentiallySports.