Emma Raducanu has achieved one of her seasonal goals, with the WTA Tour campaign coming to a close. The British star ended her season early in October due to illness.
Raducanu’s campaign was a mixed bag. She pulled off some notable victories at Wimbledon and the US Open and regained her title as British No. 1. But she struggled with her fitness towards the latter stages and this became apparent at the Ningbo Open when she required a doctor’s visit and lost her opening-round match in three sets. On the back of this and other issues she decided to call her season early but announced she would keep coach Francisco Roig for 2026. This absence jeopardized a goal she had set for herself for the year: being seeded for the Australian Open.
The 22-year-old withdrew from her last two competitions for the year ranked 29th, just inside her target of being in the top 32. However, she was unable to add any ranking points after pulling out of the final events so faced a wait to see if she would achieve this feat. With the season over she is now able to smile.
Raducanu has finished as world No. 29, meaning that unless she endures a difficult start to the first few events of 2026 she will be seeded in Melbourne. It was at the beginning of October that Raducanu set out this goal and elaborated on why she wished to be seeded at the first Grand Slam of the new campaign.
“My goal for the coming weeks is to try to be seeded at the Australian Open. I will do everything I can to achieve that. The higher my ranking is, the better,” said Raducanu.
“You might have better chances of advancing in the draw, but you can still be seeded and play against the best players quite early in tournaments. There’s also an element of luck, but you have to do your best in all situations to increase your chances.”
She also stated that by achieving such a goal, she sets an example for those looking up to her. Raducanu continued: “It’s really nice to remember that you’re inspiring younger people to play.
“But it’s very easy to lose sight of these things because you get too absorbed in your own world. It’s a great achievement for me. I want to continue to set an example on the court by having a good attitude.
“I know that sometimes other players get angry or lose patience, and it’s inevitable that occasionally you won’t feel good when you are playing. But I try to present the best image possible. You never know who’s watching, and I don’t want to set a bad example for younger generations.”
Raducanu is the only Brit within the top 32, which was headed this year by world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. Iga Swiatek trailed quite some way back in second and Coco Gauff was ranked as world No. 3. Amanda Anisimova’s brilliant season sees her end it as world No. 4.