Emma Raducanu handled ‘negativity from naysayers’ very well, says Australian great

Results have not gone Emma Raducanu’s way in recent months, but the way she has handled the setbacks and criticism has impressed Australian legend Todd Woodbridge.

After her fairytale run at the US Open last year where she became the first-ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam, Raducanu has struggled to put together a decent run as she failed to win back-to-back matches in her first five tournaments of the year.

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However, the tide appears to have turned as she reached quarter-final at the Stuttgart Open and the round of 16 at the Madrid Open last week.

Woodbridge, who won 21 Grand Slam doubles titles, believes there have been several positives for the teenager in recent months and he is most impressed by her ability to deal with criticism.

“What has stood out though are some real positives in the way she’s handled herself by being thrust into such a huge limelight,” he told the official Australian Open website.

“Coming out and not being able to perform at that same level as winning a US Open, and still being able to cope with the disappointment of that, and the negativity from naysayers… I’ve been impressed about how she’s been able to go, okay, I am a work in progress, and I understand that what happened to me was brilliant, but I understand that I’m still emerging and everyone else has to understand that with me.

“It’s a really tough environment to be growing up in front of cameras, with everyone like us here having a discussion about her. I think she’s handled that as well as anybody that I’ve seen.

“She’s intelligent,