Emma Raducanu has claimed her Chinese mother would prefer her to be a piano-playing doctor than a tennis ace before the British star faces Wang Yafan at the Australian Open. And the Bromley-based star has revealed visiting Renee’s home city of Shenyang is a welcome escape from the pressure of her life as a Major champion.
Raducanu has the chance to reach the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time since her 2021 US Open triumph today against China’s world No.94 in the third match in her favourite 1573 Arena.
She also beat a Chinese player Shuai Zhang in the second round in New York on her way to the title. But her connection to her mother’s homeland goes back years as she spent every summer holiday in Shenyang as a child. And she was able to return there for the first time since the pandemic last September during her rehabilitation from May ankle and wrist surgeries.
“I hadn’t been to China in four years so for me, I have family out there,” Raducanu said. “My grandma lives there, all of my mom’s side is out there. It i’s something that I haven’t been able to do because of the tennis schedule.
“But I was so happy to go out there and I spent a whole month just immersing myself in the culture and the language, spending time with family and my grandma who’s getting older so it was really nice for me to just be able to go back and I definitely improve my Mandarin every time I’m there so by the end I was pretty pretty competent.
“I speak Mandarin to everyone there because no one really speaks English and Shenyang. It’s a huge city, millions of people but it’s probably one of the less well known cities in China. But yeah, because none of my family speak English so for me it’s perfect because I just speak Mandarin and practice and improve it.”
Raducanu, who posted a message on social media to her fans in Mandarin after her US Open victory, also had the time to learn other aspects of Chinese culture. “I learned how to play mahjong (a tile game) and I learned a little bit how to paint,” she said. “One of my mom’s best friends is an artist and has a gallery and I learned how to paint with her.
” I learned a little bit of the piano. So I really tried to just pick things up that I would never have had time to do. And playing the piano has always been a dream of hers. And I think in her ideal world, I’d be a doctor playing the piano and be able to paint and be good at maths. So yeah, I think that I just was able to do certain things that I never would have had the chance to do otherwise.”
Raducanu was born in Toronto to a Romanian father Ian and Chinese mother and her two favourite players growing up were Simona Halep and Li Na.
She has spoken before her Grand Slam return of playing more freely and without a “backpack of rocks” on her back. And she is also travelling with only her mother and her childhood coach as part of a reset in her life.
And the world No.296, playing here on a protected ranking, said going to China as a first time as a Major champion had helped her get away from the pressures of the tennis circuit and her fame.
“When I go there, no one really knows who I am. So that’s also a bonus. I can kind of walk on the street with my head up looking around. So that’s pretty nice. And I just feel really comfortable there because I think all my best memories from childhood have all been the three weeks of summer holiday I would go to China every year and just eat with my aunt, with my grandma.
“I think food is such a big part of the culture. And just sharing those memories really with them. But now my cousin is now at uni so it’s not the same as it used to be. I think I noticed that this time because when I was younger I’d go there and all I would do was literally go to the spa, go out for lunch, go to dinner, out for dinner and then like this time I actually had to do fitness and it was different. But nevertheless, I still enjoy it every time I go.”
