Emma Raducanu is unimpressed with the Australian Open’s schedule after a busy run preparing for the tournament.
England’s No.1 arrived in Melbourne on Friday after reaching the quarter-finals of the Hobart International but will begin her campaign against Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkau from Sunday.
And not only was she scheduled for the opening day, she was given a slot for the second night’s session at the Margaret Court Arena after the men’s game, which kicks off at 7pm local time (8am BST), meaning a very late start is likely.
Raducanu was scheduled to hold his first practice at 9pm local time on Saturday and said: “It’s very difficult. I want to spend more time in the environment and practice more time, but I think the schedule has pretty much delivered to me to change things up and make the most of what I have in front of me.
“It’s easy to give up and complain, but I don’t think it will help much. So I’m going to focus and turn it around for tomorrow.
“It’s very difficult to schedule a women’s match after a five-set match. It doesn’t make much sense to me.
“I’m going to practice today and see how it goes. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a situation like that. I’ve probably only played once before, in the US Open semifinals.
“It was my second night game, but other than that I’ve never played that late before, so it’s a new experience for me and something I have to learn.”
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The highlight was top seed Emma Raducanu’s elimination at the Hobart International.
It will be tough for Radukanu even though he enters the season in good form, but the 23-year-old has once again battled physical issues during pre-season, with a foot injury severely limiting his time on the court.
She looked lacking in sharpness against Maria Sakkari in last week’s United Cup match, and beat Camila Osorio in her opening match in Hobart before losing to lower-ranked Australian Taylor Preston.
Raducanu said of the foot problem: “It’s definitely a lot better. We’ve had to manage it over the last few months, but I’m really happy with the progress we’ve made this year.
“I came to Australia not knowing what would happen, but now I am in a much better place and improving every day.
“I can easily get frustrated if I don’t have the pre-season I want. I think I’ll just get frustrated. After my first year on tour last year, I really realized that the season is too long. I want to try my best this year.”
“Obviously I hope this week goes well, but I know I’m doing the right things and it will fall into place at some point.
“I started training very late in tennis, so I think I need to take some of the pressure off myself and not put too much pressure on myself and expect to be able to play some great tennis.”
Raducanu has had a tough early schedule at the Australian Open.
On paper, Sawangkaew shouldn’t offer too much of a threat of making his Grand Slam debut as he is ranked 195th, but the 23-year-old already has a title at a lower level this season.
“I think it’s tricky because even at ITF level, when you play a lot of matches and win a lot, you put a lot of work into it,” Raducanu said.
“I think it’s a very dangerous opponent, a very dangerous situation. There’s an element of surprise because we don’t know much about him.”
Williams is excited to make history ahead of her wild card return.
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Venus Williams talks about how excited she is to play in the Australian Open for the first time in five years.
Venus Williams is ready to celebrate her latest milestone as she prepares to play in the Australian Open for the first time in five years.
At 45, the American becomes the oldest woman to compete in the Melbourne Park main draw, surpassing Japan’s Kimiko Date, who was 44, in the 2015 final.
“I never thought about it until it came out in the press, so yeah, yeah,” said Williams, who first played in the tournament in 1998. “Let’s do it.”
Williams reached her second singles final in Melbourne in 2017 but has not traveled Down Under since 2021. It’s been two and a half years since your last Grand Slam appearance other than the US Open.
But Williams, who returned to the court last summer after injuries and health concerns, notched her first singles win in two years in Washington and advanced to the US Open women’s doubles quarterfinals with Leila Fernandez.
Venus Williams, 45, will play in her first Australian Open since 2021 after receiving a wild card.
She pointed out that Australia might be too far away at the time, but that a wild card would be on the way, which Williams gratefully accepted.
“You have to throw out red herrings, right,” she said. “And I had a wedding coming up. I had two weddings coming up. It was a busy time, so I just focused on that.
“This is the best place to play on Earth. I’ve made amazing memories here. I love a challenge, so I’m up for the challenge.”
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