Rafael Nadal gives verdict on Emma Raducanu's 'tough year' after British star's tribute

Rafael Nadal has given his verdict on Emma Raducanu's "tough year" after the Brit crashed out to Carolina Garcia in the Wimbledon second round. The 19-year-old had been spotted wearing the Spaniard's famous Nike bull logo earlier in the tournament.

Raducanu donned Nadal's bull logo on a t-shirt during a training session ahead of her first-round match and again in her post-match press conference on Monday. The British No 1 beat Alison Van Uytvanck before falling to Caroline Garcia in the second round on Wednesday - the latest in her early exits since winning the US Open.

After the 19-year-old paid tribute to him, the 22-time Major champion refused to give her advice but said her performance in Flushing Meadows had been "unbelievable" as he spoke about Raducanu's season since. "I am not a big fan of advices, honestly. I think people who is next to the player have normally the best advices because they know the situation, the personal situation, of the person," he said when asked if he had any pointers as a former teenage Grand Slam champion.

"But I honestly never had a big interaction with her. But I was very impressive when I saw her winning the US Open. I think was last year, no? I saw the final. The way that she played was unbelievable."

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And while Nadal - who won the French Open aged 19 - knew that the world No 11 had been struggling with early exits and injuries this year, he said her US Open title would give her confidence to get back to her best. He continued: "Then it's difficult to manage all this kind of success at very early stage of your life, no? But I wish her all the very best. I think she's a very important character for our sport.

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