Emma Raducanu’s two-word verdict on Luke Littler as she shares what leaves her ‘on edge’

has revealed her “amazing respect” for fellow teenage champion after she struggled to handle the instant fame of her US Open triumph.

Littler, 17, followed his defeat in last year’s final by returning to become the youngest ever winner of the PDC World Darts title.

Raducanu shocked the tennis world by winning the 2021 title in New York but then struggled for three years with form and injuries.

And the British No.2 said she admired Littler’s ability to focus after his breakthrough before she relaunches her career in 2025 at the .

“I mean amazing respect to him, especially going out and backing it up and winning the title,” Raducanu said. “It’s difficult.

“All the attention and the photographers, not much prepares you for that. You feel like you’re constantly a bit on edge because you’re being followed or something. But I think the biggest part is just the judgment and the comments about every single decision that you make and that for me was really difficult to deal with and to try and desensitise myself to and just understand that comes with the territory you’re in.

“But I think trying to stay away from that and keep on my path has probably been the biggest adjustment for me.”

World No.60 Raducanu admitted she is a “really tragic” darts player but sees similarities with tennis – and would “big time” like to meet Littler.

“I’d love to meet any top athletes, top individuals, who have succeeded in their fields,” she said. “And I think darts is such a precision sport that I’d be so keen and interested to hear things that he had to say about it, and stay focused, because you can be so close, but not necessarily execute the final shot. And in that sense, it’s quite similar to tennis.”

Raducanu, who has employed fitness trainer Yutaka Nakamura to work with her coach Nick Cavaday this season, hopes her team will also help her in 2025.

“In my case, I didn’t necessarily have really strong foundations when I won the US Open,” she added. “So now I feel like I’m building a good team around me as well. Everything is for sustainability.’

The Bromley-based star spent Christmas in New Zealand but was forced to pull out of her only warm-up event in Auckland because of a back spasm. Now 22, she claimed she had learned from past experiences before facing Russian world No.27 Ekaterina Alexandrova in the first round tomorrow.

“Something that I probably would have done last year is probably played, and you don’t know what happens in that match, and you pick up a niggle and it affects your preparation for this week. But I think growing the maturity and discipline to be like this is how I’m going to do it. I’m not going to get swayed by comments or anything, because I know that there’s a risk of setting myself back and doing big damage to the existing problem right now. So I think that was where it was really helpful to have Yutaka and Nick just telling me how it is, and being quite firm about the decision.”

Before getting bitten by “jumping ants”, Raducanu revealed her day off between training blocks last week was far from glamorous. “I spent the first half tidying, just doing house cleaning,” she said.