'Much better player than she was in 2021': Tim Henman backs Emma Raducanu for glory despite Wimbledon setback

Former Britain’s number one Tim Henman believes that Emma Raducanu is on the right track despite having a disappointing Wimbledon campaign. The 22-year-old was knocked out of the third Grand Slam of the year after losing to world number one Aryna Sabalenka in third round with a score of 7-6, 6-4.

It was Raducanu’s 14th defeat in 32 matches this year. In 2025, Raducanu has featured in 12 WTA events but has only managed to cement a spot in the quarterfinals on two occasions. Despite that, Wimbledon’s tournament director Henman has come out in support of Raducanu.

Henman, while speaking to Sky Sports, stated that in his opinion, Raducanu is on the right track. Henman suggested that Raducanu has improved as a player compared to her performance back in 2021, when she won the US Open at the age of 18. Henman stated that the result against Sabalenka would have been disappointing for Raducanu, but he believes that her performance against one of the best players in the world will give her a lot of confidence going forward into the competitions.

“She’s a much better player than she was in 2021 because she’s had four more years of experience and now she’s started to build more of a team around her,” said Henman. “She’s been competing so much more this year, which therefore emphasises the physical resilience that she’s got because she was always getting injuries. So I just hope she can continue in that vein because if she keeps doing the right things on the practice court, the results will come on the match because she’s that good a player. And I think it was great to see her on the biggest stage in our sport against the number one player in the world. She had a really good chance to win that match and I’m sure that will motivate her now moving onto the hardcourt swing in America to keep building.”