Emma Raducanu 'devastated' at Wimbledon as her own GB captain raises questions

British Billie Jean King Cup captain believes Emma Raducanu will be "devastated" with her loss to Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon, despite pushing the world No. 1 in two close sets. Raducanu produced an impressive performance to lead by a break in both sets but ultimately came up short, losing 7-6(6) 6-4.

Anne Keothavong has now backed Raducanu to get back to the top of the game. But she questioned whether the Brit could "sustain her level" last night, and now wants to see the 22-year-old apply what she has learned at Wimbledon to become more consistent.

Reflecting on Friday's tough defeat, Keothavong told the BBC: "Emma, she played some of her best stuff out there, but you have to give credit to Aryna Sabalenka because when it came to those big moments, she showed us why she's No. 1 in the world. But for most of the match, I actually thought that Emma was playing better tennis."

Three-time Major winner Sabalenka told the Centre Court crowd that Raducanu could return to the world's top 10 if she continued to show the same level throughout the season. And the BJK Cup captain agreed.

"I do think if Emma can really take confidence, which I hope she will take confidence from this performance and continue to build, then I have no doubt that we'll see her at the top of the game in no time," she added.

"It was great to see Emma come so close, she would've been devastated after that match. And I think she was in her press conference really upset. There's still so much to be positive about and hopefully she'll be able to reflect on that in the next few days."

Raducanu's level was so impressive that Keothavong wondered whether she could keep it up during the match. But, as Raducanu learned, she can't drop her concentration against the world's best players.

Keothavong continued: "There were times where I was wondering, 'Gosh, this is so good, is she going to be able to sustain it?' For a lot of the time, for most this match, I think she surprised a lot of people that she was able to challenge the world No. 1 and live with her.

"She's a smart girl, she's an intelligent tennis player, and she's able to adapt and we saw that from her last night. I think using the crowd as well and getting the energy from everyone and channelling it into her tennis, she was able to transfer that into her game well.

"It just came down to a few points. In the second set, she did a great job getting to 4-1 ahead but then just seemed to run out of a little bit of steam. As soon as you drop your energy levels, just by a fraction, the world No. 1 is going to come back at you and take advantage of that."

The question now is whether the former US Open champion can show the same level moving forward.

"It really is fine margins, the challenge is now going wherever she plays next, finding that energy, finding those feelings again, finding that kind of confidence and going out and doing it on a more consistent basis," Raducanu's BJK Cup captain explained.

"I think it'll take a few days to really sink in and reflect properly on it. Emotions will still probably be high, I don't know whether she got any sleep last night, adrenaline levels would've been high.

"She's a fierce competitor in her own right and she would've been gutted about the end result, but hopefully proud. She should feel proud with her performance during this grass court season and continue to build. And the fact that she leaves Wimbledon in a better place than when she started."

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