Emma Raducanu makes sad friendship admission after going through 'dips'

Emma Raducanu has explained why she struggles to form friendships on the WTA Tour as she prepares to face Naomi Osaka for the first time. The Brit advanced to the second round of this week's Citi Open in Washington where she meets four-time Major winner Osaka.

There have been comparisons between Raducanu's and Osaka's careers, as both Grand Slam champions have found themselves struggling for form at times and skipped all or most of the 2023 season. But world No. 46 Raducanu believes she went through more "dips" after her US Open win, and she has now shared the sad reason she is reluctant to make friends with players like Osaka.

Both women won their maiden Major trophies in Flushing Meadows. Osaka was just 20 when she beat tennis icon Serena Williams in a controversial final in 2018, which saw Williams penalised by the umpire.

Three years later, Raducanu stormed through the draw aged just 18 in her fourth-ever professional tournament, becoming the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam title. They've each been through their own rough patches since then, but the British No. 3 still thinks their introductions to the sport were very different.

"When I won my US Open, I came from school, I was no one, I was 200 in the world, and Naomi had already won Indian Wells. She was already a known figure on the tour, and people kind of expected, okay, like, she's going to start doing well and start winning Slams," Raducanu explained.

"Whereas I think when I won, it was completely out of nowhere. It means that I didn't quite build the foundations she had when she won her Grand Slams, which I think is why she was able to repeat and win another three, back-to-back US Open and Australia.

"I think she was an established pro tour player, whereas I didn't necessarily feel that way. It's probably why I had a lot more dips afterwards."

Raducanu still hasn't won a title since her US Open triumph four years ago, and her best tour-level results since then are semi-final appearances. But she can still relate to Osaka, who took a lengthy break in 2023 to welcome her first child. That same year, Raducanu ended her season early to have three surgeries.

She continued: "It's good to see the similarities now. I think we have both kind of started doing better and started enjoying the process more and enjoying developing.

"I think it's nice that after having such big highs and then some lows to both be working towards, you know, going up again."

Despite some of their shared experiences, Raducanu has never spoken to the former world No. 1. And the Brit isn't keen on getting too close to any of her rivals, as it makes competition even more difficult.

"I think when we're on the tour, it's very difficult to really open up with other players that you're competing against. I think for me, I have a few friends on the tour, but it does add another dimension when you play them," she added.

"I have really good friends at home that I can trust and speak to. For me, I just find it harder to compete against a person I'm friends with."

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