A rejuvenated Emma Raducanu is feeling more at home on court ahead of Wimbledon: "I'm back and better"

As Wimbledon 2026 fast approaches (29 June), it's a good time to be an Emma Raducanu fan.

A household name in Great Britain, the 2021 US Open champion is not only playing some of the best tennis in her career ahead of her home major, but is doing so with a renewed perspective on the court.

The 23-year-old made a run to the Queen's Club final in London earlier this month, and while the quality of her four wins was striking, so too was the enjoyment she was clearly having on court.

"I think the way I was feeling on the court, the way I was moving, the way I was expressing myself, just the whole package... how I was acting on the court," she said after one of her matches.

"I really enjoyed it."

Raducanu continued: "I think that's something that I want to take forward in all of my matches and really embrace this grass court season."

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She's still the most unlikely Grand Slam champion in the sport's history, having come from the qualifying event (three rounds of a play-in tournament) as the world No. 150 to make the main draw of the US Open.

The fairytale run catapulted her into international stardom, and while she has shown flashes of some of that same brand of tennis over the last five years, Queen's marked her biggest final since.

And it also showcased a free-wheeling, power-packed and love-of-the-fight sort of Raducanu, too.

"I think it's clear this week that I had a lot of fun on the court," Raducanu reiterated after an upset over Iva Jovic, the world No. 19, to make the Queen's final. "When I'm smiling and enjoying it, that's when I feel the best level can kind of flow out from there, rather than trying to put me in any type of mould."

"I think it's the 'new Emma,'" she added. "Because you take all the lessons and experience, all the different ups and downs, and you understand a lot more of what's going on and what works for you.

"I'm back and better."

Emma Raducanu: An old crew feels new

As Raducanu has settled into her pro career over the last half decade, she has bounced from coach to coach, seemingly looking to replicate the lightning-in-a-bottle she captured in that summer of 2021, when it was Andrew Richardson by her side.

Or find something that worked for her long-term.

So the answer just a few weeks ago? Bring Richardson back.

"I think it's great to have him back," Raducanu said of her fellow Brit Richardson, who she linked up with again in May after exchanging text messages.

"I think we have been working on this game style. The whole week [in Queen's] I have been playing really, really good tennis and the brand of tennis that I really want to play."

Raducanu can pack one of the meanest punches in women's tennis, with a blistering game from the baseline. But she also moves well across the back of the court, can deliver strong serving numbers, and isn't afraid to adjust to an opponent should she need.

It's that recipe that Richardson could help her tap into again, a balance that is much trickier to implement than one might think.

Yet the "feel good, play good" mantra can't be stressed enough for Raducanu, it seems, either.

"[My team] have helped me through some really sticky situations in the past few months," she said after finishing as runner-up to Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallist Donna Vekic at Queen's. "And it honestly means the world to me for them to believe [in me] unconditionally.

"So yeah, I wouldn't be here also without them."

Centre Court takes centre stage at Wimbledon

It's hard to stress just how much of a spotlight gets thrust on British players during Wimbledon, one of the sport's four majors and - arguably - the most famous tennis tournament in the world.

With Jack Draper, who made the US Open semi-finals in 2024 and won the Indian Wells Masters last year, still struggling with a plethora of injuries, the attention and focus on Raducanu will be white hot as The Championships get underway.

But the Brit handled such a microscope extremely well a year ago, winning two rounds before giving world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka everything she could handle - and more - in a third-round, middle weekend battle on Centre Court and made for primetime viewing across the country.

"I fought for every point like crazy," Sabalenka would say afterwards.

Having ridden the global tennis roller-coaster - and faced the pressures that go along with it - over the last five years, Raducanu's Queen's run could come in particular use at the All England Club.

"You know, playing at home, there is no feeling like it," she said after her loss to Vekic. "I was so just in awe of the atmosphere and in awe of the support I received all week. I couldn't really believe it.

"Even though I know I'm playing at home, it just trumps anything that you ever really think of."

She added: "For that, I'm really grateful, and I just see how many people are behind me and rooting for me. It means a lot, because the results don't always go your way the whole season. You see things written about you or spoken about you... but when you play at home, you're just reminded how much support there is actually for you. It means a lot to have that."

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