“Truly difficult decision” – Emma Raducanu explains exactly why she chose Korea Open instead of representing Great Britain at Billie Jean King Cup

British player Emma Raducanu made her feelings clear about her decision to play the Korea Open instead of representing her nation at the Billie Jean King Cup finals. The 2021 US Open winner was pivotal to Great Britain’s semifinal run last year, where Slovakia trumped her side.

However, for the upcoming BJK Cup event, Raducanu withdrew her name from Great Britain’s team, thereby leaving big shoes to fill for her side. Due to this decision, the 22-year-old faced immense criticism, too.

Raducanu, who is currently competing in the Korea Open, explained her recent decision to withdraw from the BJK Cup. The British player stated that she wanted to spend more time in practice with her new coach, Francisco Roig, before the start of the Asian swing, thereby prioritizing the Korea Open. She said (via Tennis Korea):

Trending

"It was a truly difficult decision. I love the BJK Cup so much, and I gave it my all last year, even under difficult circumstances (a draw against the British team). However, the Korea Open was a crucial time for me to get used to my new coach, Francis, and even though it was the end of the season, I felt it was more important to work with an experienced coach ahead of the Asian swing. I wanted to prioritize working with him and further developing myself."

Notably, Emma Raducanu started her Korea Open campaign with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Jaqueline Cristian. She is scheduled to face Barbora Krejcikova in the second round of the tournament.

Emma Raducanu shared her emotions after winning her opening game of the Korea Open 2025

Emma Raducanu expressed her emotions after winning the opening game of her Korea Open campaign. Speaking in an interview, the British player expressed her happiness to be on the winning side.

Additionally, she also revealed that the match wasn't easy for her, and pulling off a victory was a relief. She said (via BBC):

"I'm super happy to have won. It hasn't been easy. I feel like I've played this match the last three days. To have pulled through after waiting, I'm super pleased at how I came through."

Before the Korea Open, Emma Raducanu had a brief run at the US Open, where she was eliminated in the third round of the tournament by Elena Rybakina. The Kazakh player dominated the match and defeated Raducanu 6-1, 6-2.

×

Was this article helpful?

Thank You for feedback

About the author

Soumik Bhattacharya

Soumik is a journalist at Sportskeeda who covers US Olympics. Currently an Honors student of Journalism and Mass Communication, he has also worked for other firms as a tennis and football content writer.

Soumik’s favorite Olympian is Michael Phelps and he believes that the eight-time Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer has revolutionized the spectrum of Swimming. Nonetheless, the adrenaline rush that Track & Field sports offer interests him the most; and Neeraj Chopra’s historic gold-medal victory at the 2020 Tokyo Games is his favorite moment from past Olympics.

Soumik sources data and facts from credible sources like BBC and NBC for accurate and relevant reporting, and keeps up with updates on social media and news media platforms.

He feels that covering collegiate tournaments, similar to what is done in the United States can be a good way to cover the bridge the coverage gap during the Olympics off season.

When not reporting on the latest Olympics news stories, Soumik likes to play cricket and watch movies.

Know More