ROLAND GARROS

May 24, 2026

Emma Raducanu

Press Conference

S. SIERRA/E. Raducanu

6-0, 7-6

THE MODERATOR: We'll jump straight into questions.

Q. Emma, you fought back well in the second set. Is that the kind of positive you can take from that, and do you think it was maybe just a case of not having enough matches your belt?

EMMA RADUCANU: Yeah, it was difficult. I don't think I've fully processed it yet, so it's hard to kind of speak about the match right now. But I have to at least take the fact that from, you know, a set and 4-1 down, I came back and made it competitive in the second set. Yeah, in a way I'm pretty disappointed. Obviously I wanted to do better, but I guess that's the light I can take from today.

Q. We heard you just coughing there, and we saw you coughing on court. Is that an issue, respiratory? Was that just the heat that you were dealing with perhaps?

EMMA RADUCANU: Yeah, I think I've just been struggling a bit with a cough for the last few weeks, but otherwise, my symptoms have been pretty good. It's just I've kind of been left with a lingering cough.

So, yeah, I don't think the clay -- the clay kind of irritates it a little bit, but I think, you know, overall health-wise I feel good. Just a lingering cough.

Q. How do you explain the first set? It's never nice to be bageled in tennis. How do you explain what happened? Was it just an adjustment to the humidity?

EMMA RADUCANU: No, not at all. I think it was -- I can't really explain it right now. I don't really -- haven't processed it fully. I think it was really difficult.

I went on the court. I felt like the conditions were extremely lively, and I felt like I wasn't able to kind of trust my shots in that and didn't feel like I had control over the ball.

Yeah, it was just a really difficult kind of setup for me to step into, I think, having not had many matches. I think probably just a bit light on matches, a bit light on confidence coming into the tournament.

Yeah, the first set happened super quickly, and it's not a nice feeling, you know, when the points and the games are going, like, very, very fast. I'm glad at least in the second set I was able to kind of, you know, get a few games on the board.

Q. Skipping the clay altogether and going straight to grass was an option for you. How do you kind of assess that decision now, reflect on it?

EMMA RADUCANU: I mean, yeah, in hindsight, you know, after the two matches I've played, it could have been nice to have saved yourself the match, like today.

I think it will help me. I think I haven't played matches, and it's obviously very difficult coming in not having had any matches, you know, towards the back end of the clay season and these girls, you know, having tournament after tournament of confidence and wins. So I think that was pretty tricky for me.

Yeah, I didn't necessarily do as well as I'd like to this year, but I think the only way to kind of face and improve how I'm feeling is to go through the tough parts, to go through the pain of it, and hopefully come out on the other side better and stronger.

Q. I'm curious, in general, just how prepared did you feel coming into this match?

EMMA RADUCANU: I think I've been practicing well, but it's been, like, five, six weeks after two months off. I mean, it was going to be a big ask coming in. I really wanted to play the French, so that was my decision.

I stand by it, because I think I got to experience a Grand Slam. I never want to miss it. I think I competed as well as I could in the second set with what I had today.

So, yeah, that's all I got.

Q. Emma, you are still really young in this career, and you already had your fair share of injuries and health issues. I'm just curious if you can share what has been the mindset for you to just go through it, accept the setbacks, the stop and go of all of it, because it's not what you think about when you think about professional career. You think about playing all the matches that you want, the tournaments that you want. I think to stop and come back all the time, what kind of mindset do you need to just go through that?

EMMA RADUCANU: Yeah, it's very difficult. I think you need a lot of resilience. I think I'm trying my best each day, and I think that's all I can ask of myself.

Q. Now you can kind of turn your attention to the grass. Have these matches kind of given you things to work on for that, and do you what your schedule is going to be beyond Queens?

EMMA RADUCANU: Yeah, looking forward to getting back on home soil, for sure. Queens is always an amazing tournament, so I'm looking forward to starting there. Afterwards, I don't know. It depends how, you know, it goes.