Emma Raducanu told 'honeymoon phase is over' as Boris Becker delivers brutal verdict

Boris Becker says Emma Raducanu’s ‘honeymoon phase is over’ with the British No.1 ‘miles away’ from reaching the latter stages of tournaments.

The 19-year-old’s 2022 season hasn’t quite gone the same way as how she ended last year when she won the US Open, becoming the first ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam.

Injuries, illness and blisters to her hands have seen her win just four matches on the WTA Tour since her fairytale triumph at the US Open.

After kicking her Billie Jean King Cup debut for Great Britain off with a win by beatingTereza Martincova at the weekend, she suffered a heavy defeat to Marketa Vondrousova.

Former world No.1 Becker feels the world No.12 is a long way off competing for titles based on her current form.

‘The honeymoon phase is over, and the Brits are starting to worry,’ he told Eurosport’s Das Gelbe vom Ball podcast.

‘You can lose, but if you’re always eliminated in the first or second round after winning the US Open, you ask yourself. How is that possible now?

‘Emma won’t win every tournament, but you can always expect semi-finals plus or minus, but she’s miles away from that at the moment.

‘Everything is much more difficult than it looks from the outside. Especially with the psyche.

‘How do you deal with the pressure? How do you deal with your own expectations? What are you doing differently now than before?’

Raducanu faces another fresh challenge this week with her clay-court campaign getting underway when she competes at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart.

The teenager recently admitted that she’s been frustrated with her setbacks this year but still feels her tennis level is ‘pretty good.’

‘Of course it is frustrating for sure,’ Raducanu said. ‘But in some sort of twisted way it