Who would have thought that a qualifier will go on to become
the queen of New York in a matter of 3 weeks? Emma Raducanu, Toronto born
British teenager ranked 150 and nothing to boast off in her resume did
something unthinkable that some great players have not been able to do in their
entire career, only in her second outing in a major tournament. What was even
better than that that she did not drop a set in her 10 matches throughout the
tournament. No qualifier, men or women have lifted a major trophy before, and
it is very unlikely to happen in future. Before this, Brits Andy Murray had to
wait for 7 years and lost numerous grand slam finals to the big 3 to lift his
first major trophy in 2012 and then adding couple more next year.
Just a couple of months back in Wimbledon as a wild card
ranked 338, she went on to reach the fourth round and then eventually withdrawing
from the tournament sighting breathing problems. She received a lot of flak for
this from retired player and British journalists telling she can not handle
pressure. She did not respond to these people and rather went back to her
routine and practice.
Through all this whirlwind couple of months, what was striking was that she did not lose focus of the sight. Before this, her only big title
was in Pune in 2019. She made history even before winning the final as she
became the first qualifier to reach the grand slam final. Another teenager was waiting
in the final and it was all teenage final where Emma fired an ace to clinch the
trophy with a bleeding shin.
Amidst everything that she achieved, it was her impeccable grace on and off the court that she displayed, has received a lot of praise from all quarters. You could see her cherubic smile every time camera zoomed on her. She was enjoying the best time of her life. She was unfazed by the stage and the occasion she found herself in. From receiving a congratulatory letter from queen to getting invited for met gala, it must have been a surreal experience for 18 years old.
Whenever she was in front of the mic, she spoke with poise
and confidence. Not to belittle Indian athletes but they must be taught how to
speak to media. Media and social media are bigger platform now and everyone
wants a piece of you when you win something big. Her twitter following increased
from meagre 120K to 590K and counting in a matter of day. I hope she maintains
this poise and hope she gets best advice as at this age things can go either
way. Hope we are seeing a future super star and many more grand slam trophies to
her name. She is just 18 and only going to get better and stronger.
Through all this history being made, what was disappointing
to see that Indian media did not cover this profusely. These are once in a lifetime
event and a huge moment in tennis history and would have certainly encouraged a
lot of young kids to take sport taking inspiration from Emma. I hope we encourage
sports and not just Indian athletes to promote sport culture in India.
Congratulations Emma and all the very best.
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