By Tony Fairbairn at Wimbledon
- Emma Raducanu is hoping to build on momentum created in the build-up to Wimbledon
- Jack Draper is aspiring to be the ‘best in the world’ as he is seeded for Wimbledon for first time
- Novak Djokovic provides update on knee injury as he aims to play first tournament since meniscus surgery
LONDON, ENGLAND – Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper spoke about recent momentum and missing last year’s Wimbledon on media day.
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Raducanu and Draper looking to make impact on Wimbledon return
Our media day diary starts with two players that missed last year’s Wimbledon in the form of Emma Raducanu and Jack Draper.
The two Brits had surgeries last year that prevented them from playing last year’s event but have now returned with a vengeance as they enter Wimbledon in good form.
Starting with Raducanu, the former US Open champion had wrist surgeries last year but a positive run to the quarter-finals in Eastbourne leaves the Brit in a good position.
Speaking on media day Raducanu explained what last year was like and why this year she has had her best ever preparation to a Grand Slam.
“Yeah, I was actually on the other side doing a lot of suite visits, hospitality. It was really hard ’cause you would walk through the same player tunnel, see your peers going to practice, going to play their match,” Raducanu explained in her press conference.
“Yeah, I think being on the other side just really stang. It wasn’t nice and I didn’t really watch any of the tennis either. For me to be on this side of it this year is just super special. Yeah, there’s been upgrades, more additions. Yeah, just so happy to be out on the grass here.
“Yeah, I would say this preparation has worked out really well. I got a great balance between matches, but also staying fresh and not playing too much. I think the Eastbourne week, it was really helpful in getting some top-level matches, and also to get a really good win in the second round. Yeah, my best win to date. I think I should take a lot of confidence from that.
“Also it helps not arriving too early, I would say, to the site because sometimes when you arrive too early, you have time to think. I’ve done it before where I’ve not played before the Grand Slam. I’d make the second round, play my match Thursday, but I’ve been there since Monday before. I feel like in week two, but I’m in round two. It’s also helpful to keep momentum and keep things going and think less.”
Raducanu will now hope that she can match her fourth round run in 2021 and that bid will start by facing 22nd seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the first round.
Speaking ahead of the contest Raducanu spoke about how difficult the match as going to be as she walks onto Centre Court.
“Yeah, I think it’s a tough match. Like, she’s seeded really well. It’s obviously going to be hard,” Raducanu stated.
“I think that she’s got great weapons. On this surface, on grass, it only amplifies big weapons. I’m expecting a really difficult match. I think it’s a match where I’m actually the complete underdog because, yeah, she’s a lot older, a lot more experienced, ranked a lot higher.
“For me, I feel like it’s just a great opportunity to try to get a good scalp, try to enjoy playing how I have been in the last few weeks, and just get back into it. I mean, it’s not much time between Eastbourne and here. I feel like I’m in a good roll of it. In a way, there’s not much time to think about too much.”
Raducanu will be second on Centre Court on Monday.
Draper aiming to be best in world after Wimbledon seeding
Another player who was forced to miss Wimbledon last year was Draper who was injured at last year’s Roland Garros which forced him to miss the most important part of the season.
The Brit admitted it was ‘difficult’ to miss it last year and is ‘proud’ to be able to compete here this year.
“I mean, it was really difficult. I obviously didn’t just miss this one. I missed Queen’s, the whole grass,” Draper explained in his press conference.
“I think I sat on my couch for most of it, just kind of really frustrated, watching all the matches. I remember I watched a couple matches. I think I watched the Broady-Ruud match, which was amazing to see Broads doing well. Obviously watched the full final, which was hard to watch obviously someone so young winning the title, showing what he’s capable of.
“It really, really motivated me and was actually I think a blessing in disguise because my body wasn’t ready. I don’t think mentally I was ready either to be a top player. It was a good sort of break that I needed to sort of rediscover the fire I needed. From there, I’ve been great.
“Tennis is such a brutal sport in the way at the stage I got injured, I was 40 in the world. I was going to all the amazing tournaments and stuff. Then I had a lot of these injuries. All of a sudden going to the U.S. swing, I was ranked 110, 120. I was back to sort of challengers.
“So I think sort of since that moment I watched Alcaraz win Wimbledon when I was on the couch, that sort of gave me huge motivation to want to come back to these big events and be seeded and be in a great position like I am, to give myself the opportunity to play on the biggest stages against the best players. I’ve come a long way in a year, and I’m very proud of that. I just want to keep going.”
Roll on a year later, Draper is now seeded for Wimbledon having won his first ATP title in Stuttgart as well as beating Carlos Alcaraz at Queen’s Club.
After a sensational last few weeks Draper is now aspiring to be one of the best players in the world and admitted it meant the world to be seeded for Wimbledon.
“If my game keeps on improving, I keep the mindset, and keep on improving physically like I have been, I don’t see why there’s any reason why I can’t be one of the best players in the world. That’s my aspiration, that’s my goal,” Draper determinedly said on media day.
“It meant the world. Obviously I found out I was going to be seeded at Queen’s. It’s difficult when you’re watching the draws in the slams, because there’s all those seeds. You kind of feel like it would be tough to get going if you had one of the top players the first round. But saying that, it’s important to recognize that all these players in the draw, they’re incredible players.
“Like the guy I’m playing on Tuesday, he’s qualified, he’s had three matches, he’s confident. It’s no easy feat to qualify for Wimbledon. You look down that draw, it’s just stacked. Everyone is a great player. It does give you a certain sense of ease to know you’re not going to be playing a top, top player in first rounds. But I still have to bring my A game on Tuesday and give the best I can.”
Draper will face Elias Ymer on Tuesday in his Wimbledon opener.
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Djokovic gives update on knee injury
Despite suffering a meniscus injury at Roland Garros, seven-time Novak Djokovic is fit and ready to go ahead of Wimbledon.
The seven-time champion suffered an agonising five set defeat to Alcaraz in last year’s final and is aiming to avenge last year’s loss and win a record-breaking eighth title at SW19.
There was huge doubts over Djokovic’s participation especially given how much he wants to win gold at this summer’s Olympics.
However Djokovic is now ready to play Wimbledon as he began his press conference by explaining the process behind his decision.
“I made a very quick decision to make surgery, I was very much in doubt of making Wimbledon,” Djokovic explained.
“Then after extensive conversations with certain athletes that have been through very similar situations, for example, Taylor Fritz who has been through something pretty much the same like I have three years ago. I think he injured himself also in Roland Garros. He said 21 days after he played his first round in Wimbledon.
“Really, that gave me faith and optimism that if rehab is done right and correct, and if of course knee responds well, which is something that is very unpredictable, then there is a pretty good chance that I’ll make Wimbledon.
“I still have couple days’ time. I play on Tuesday. I’m confident about the health of my knee and just general physical state is really good. Obviously once the tournament starts, I’ll have more I guess sensations and more feedback from how knee reacts to a best-of-five Grand Slam match. So far everything that was done was very positive.”
However Djokovic’s participation does raise doubts as to whether it’s a risk too far ahead of the Olympics which will be played on clay.
The Serb admitted that those close to him have raised those concerns but is determined to play Wimbledon and remains fearless about his decision.
“It’s a very fair question that I don’t know the answer to and I do know the answer to, to be honest. My wife also kind of asked the same question, right? Which is normal. 37 years old, you want to maybe have less risk and prepare yourself for Olympic Games,” Djokovic philosophically explained.
“So from that perspective, I don’t have an answer to that, but I do have something that is described as a feeling of not missing out at a Grand Slam while I can still play and while I’m still active and at this level. I wouldn’t call it a fear of missing out. I would just say it’s this incredible desire to play, just to compete.
“I’m going through this particular knee injury for the first time in my life, I wanted to see how fast can I really recover, and can I really be in a condition to compete best-of-five on grass with best players in the world. As I said few days ago, I didn’t come here to play a few rounds and prove to myself and others that I can actually compete in one or two matches. I really want to go for the title.
“Any Grand Slam, but particularly Wimbledon for me. I know that Olympics are right after that on a completely different surface. I know all of that. But I’m thinking about Wimbledon. It’s a dream tournament. I needed to focus all my attention to that.
“We put a huge amount of hours in the last three weeks on a daily basis into rehab, into exercises, basically raising the level of intensity of training and rehab every single day, of course being very cautious of the knee and the reactions. I haven’t had any setback. If I had one setback, I would be then questioning whether I should be here or not. But I haven’t had a single one. Why not give it a shot?”
Djokovic will begin his campaign against qualifier Vit Kopriva on Tuesday.
Sabalenka could miss Wimbledon as Sinner and Swiatek preview title chances
One of the most shocking pieces of news to come out of media day was Aryna Sabalenka announcing she could miss Wimbledon due to a shoulder injury.
The world number three suffered the injury in Berlin and now Sabalenka has announced that she could miss the tournament as she faces a race against time to be fit for Monday.
“No, I’m not 100% fit now. We’re doing everything we can with my team to make sure I’ll be able to play my first match here. But, no, I’m not 100% ready,” Sabalenka said in her press conference.
“Well, I would say that’s something I have to figure out right now. If I’ll not figure. out that, then I can only make things worse. I don’t want that. I don’t want to risk the rest of the season. So, yeah, we’re doing our best. As competitors, we’re not going to give up that easily. The last week, we’ve been really lots of different things we’ve been trying. Yeah, I have another day, another day and a half, to try some more stuff and see where I am.
“It’s teres major. Like shoulder. For someone who doesn’t speak very well English, I call it just shoulder injury. It’s really a specific injury, and it’s really a rare one. Probably I’m just the second or the third tennis player who injured that muscle. Yeah, that’s a very frustrating one. The most annoying thing is that I can do anything. I can practice, I can hit my groundstrokes. I’m struggling with serving. That’s really annoying.
“You don’t feel like you’re injured. If you give me some weights, I’m going to go lift some weights. But if you tell me to serve, I’m going to go through pain. We did an MRI, we did everything. We did a lot of rehab, a lot of treatments and everything. But I still have my hopes. As someone who been fighting through a lot of different pains in the past months, I still have my hopes.”
Finally, world number ones Jannik Sinner and Iga Swiatek have different perspectives ahead of Wimbledon.
Sinner is heading into Wimbledon with confidence having won Halle last week and the Italian spoke about his form in his pre-tournament press conference.
“I feel like, especially on grass when you have a good confidence with also yourself, it can help you. Obviously last week for me was an important week,” the world number one explained.
“Last year I played semis here, so in my mind I know that I can play also some good tennis on this surface. Obviously every year is a bit different. In Halle the conditions are different than here. I’m just trying to get used to it, building my confidence here on this court. That’s it.
“Thinking about seeding or all the rest, it doesn’t make any sense. Everyone wants to win and show their best here. I’m just looking forward to it, to compete, and hopefully I can show also here some good tennis.”
Meanwhile Swiatek is a former Juniors champion but has struggled to get to the semi-finals at Wimbledon in the main draw.
The Pole outlined why there have been so many different winners over the years at Wimbledon.
“I think you really have to approach this tournament little bit differently mentally because usually players on women’s side, I guess they are making little bit more mistakes than on other surfaces because the ball is low and it’s pretty fast and it’s tricky,” Swiatek acknowledged.
“I guess it comes down more to the mental side, I would say, how you’re going to be able to adjust to this surface. The player that does it better is going to win.”
Sinner will begin on Monday against Yannick Hanfmann while Swiatek starts her campaign on Tuesday against Sofia Kenin.
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