US Open champion Emma Raducanu’s grandmother Niculina Raducanu wanted her to quit tennis because of concern about the teen’s health after breathing difficulties forced her to retire from Wimbledon this year.
The 88-year-old Romanian told the Daily Mail that her granddaughter’s “health is more important” than wealth or fame.
Fortunately for the 18-year-old Briton, neither her father, Ian Raducanu — Niculina Raducanu’s son — nor her Chinese mother, Renee Raducanu, took the advice and she swept through the US Open to become the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam title.
Photo: AP
Niculina Raducanu — known to Emma as “Mamiya,” a Romanian term of endearment for grandmothers — is close to her granddaughter.
She would host Emma Raducanu twice a year in Bucharest in her apartment and she would travel to the family’s home in England to care for her granddaughter and recount stories about Romania.
However, she was so anxious for her granddaughter after she retired from her clash with Australian Ajla Tomljanovic at Wimbledon that she broached the subject of retirement with Emma Raducanu’s parents.
“I asked her parents if she should quit tennis,” Niculina Raducanu told the newspaper at her Bucharest home. “Because what if something should happen to Emma? Her health is more important” than wealth or fame.
“The court she played on that day had a roof over it because it was raining, and she felt she couldn’t breathe,” she said.
However, when it came to the US Open final, it was the grandmother not the granddaughter who faltered.
“The night she won the US Open [beating Leylah Fernandez of Canada 6-4, 6-3], I couldn’t watch because my heart couldn’t take it,” she said. “I said to myself: ‘This match is going to be a really tough one,’ so I decided not to watch it.”
“I only found out the news the next day, and I was delighted she was strong and healthy, and that her mind was healthy also — especially after what happened the last time” at Wimbledon, she said.
“When I talked to my son, I was happy for him,” she said. “He would have been so disappointed if she’d have lost after all the work and resources they’d put into this.”
Niculina Raducanu said that she has resisted till now revealing to her neighbors and friends what her Canada-born granddaughter had achieved.
“Of course, I’m very proud of her, but I’ve never told anyone I’m the grandmother of a Grand Slam champion,” she said. “I am a very modest woman and I don’t want people to think I’m bragging. When Emma puts her mind to it, she will get it. She was always a fighter.”
TIGHT FINISH: Napoli only needed to do the same as or better than Inter, who won their game against Como 2-0 on the same day, leaving Napoli with a one-point lead The two players who Antonio Conte wanted more than any others secured Napoli their second Serie A title in three years on Friday. Scott McTominay scored with an acrobatic bicycle kick before halftime and Romelu Lukaku doubled the lead with a solo goal after the break in the decisive 2-0 home win over Cagliari. Conte became the first coach to win the Italian championship with three different teams. “Everyone contributed to this — but the coach most of all,” Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo said. “Napoli needed him to get back on top. He’s phenomenal.” Comparing it to his three Serie A titles won
The journey of Taiwan’s badminton mixed doubles duo Ye Hong-wei and Nicole Chan at the Malaysia Masters in Kuala Lumpur came to an end in the semi-finals yesterday after they suffered a 2-0 loss to China’s Feng Yanzhe and Huang Dongping. Ye, 25, and Chan, 20, teamed up last year and are currently ranked No. 23 in the world. The Taiwanese shuttlers took on China’s second seeds in the mixed doubles event, but proved no match for Feng and Huang, losing the match 10-21, 7-21. In the first half of the first game, the pairings were neck and neck at 6-7 until Ye
SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte has dragged the team back from disaster and restored them to the top of Italian Serie A, but his future at the Scudetto winners is in doubt even after a triumphant season. The fiery 55-year-old has exceeded preseason expectations and bolstered his reputation as a serial winner by guiding Napoli to their fourth Scudetto, and second in three seasons. However, he might well be on his way in the summer after just one season at the helm as his charged relationship with Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has simmered throughout the campaign. Conte has said
Carlos Alcaraz on Monday powered into the French Open second round with a resounding win to start his title defense, while world No. 1 Jannik Sinner and three-time defending women’s champion Iga Swiatek also progressed at Roland Garros. Four-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz struck 31 winners in a 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Italian qualifier Giulio Zeppieri and is to face Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan in round two. Alcaraz is now on an eight-match winning streak at the French Open and also took Olympic silver at Roland Garros last year, losing the final to Novak Djokovic. “The first round is never
RSS