Emma Raducanu Shares Experience with the English Rugby Team
British tennis star Emma Raducanu, winner of the US Open in 2021, participated in a training session with the English rugby team on Tuesday. The team, led by Steve Borthwick, is preparing for their anticipated autumn match against New Zealand. Raducanu visited the training base in Surrey, where she offered advice on how to handle pressure. The tennis player’s presence provided a valuable perspective for the rugby players, who face the high demands of their sport.
Young prop Fin Baxter commented on the experience: “She did a bit of kicking with Marcus Smith. Maro Itoje was chatting with her and we were all getting distracted, letting two great figures from their sports talk.” Baxter added: “Then it was, ‘Fin, Will Stuart, come on, Emma wants to do a lineout with you’. So we did the lineout. She was very good, and caught the ball”. Then, Baxter recounted how it was to meet Raducanu: “Then I said ‘Hi Emma, I’m Fin by the way’. It was a strange way to meet her for the first time. But it was great to have her there.” Baxter also highlighted the importance of learning from Raducanu’s experience: “The amount of pressure she has to undergo due to her success is definitely something we can learn from.”Emma saw the training today and then we did some things afterwards.
Fin Baxter, rugby player
