Emma Raducanu has been immersing herself in all things rugby in recent days and she could not stop smiling as she watched England’s impressive wins against the All Blacks from prime seats at Twickenham.
The 2021 US Open champion was invited into the England rugby camp to meet the players and deliver an inspirational talk prior to their mission to face the might All Blacks.
She clearly had a positive impact as England’s long wait for victory over New Zealand ended after they came from behind to crush seal a 33-19 with.
Raducanu was beaming with joy as she shook hands with England giant Maro Itoje as he collected the trophy at the end of the match, concluding a birthday week for the 23-year-old spent plenty of time around rugby players.
Her appearance at the England training base created plenty of headlines earlier this week, as she took part in a line-out drill with the England players.
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“I had a brief chat with Emma. It was very nice of her to come in. I know the squad appreciated having her here,” said Itoje as he was asked about Raducanu’s visit earlier this week.
“To be honest, I didn’t speak to her about anything performance-related, it was more just getting to know her, getting to understand where she’s at with her season, and she was asking similar questions with regard to where we are and what we’re doing.
“She was taken aback by the size of the weights in the gym, but it was nice to have her.”
England coach Steve Borthwick said welcomed Raducanu’s visit to his camp as he said: “It’s just great having elite sports people come and visit us. Emma was talking to the players and sharing her experiences about preparing for the elite level of competition, which is terrific. People like her are always very welcome because we enjoy learning from others’ experience.
“I think the players were journalists in the rounds just talking in the contrast around individual preparation and a need to feel that everything is right and for a tennis player who is on their own out there on the court, individual preparation is everything.
“For a team sport member, it is always getting that balance but we still need to maximise that individual preparation.””
Raducanu sat alongside English actress Simone Ashley for the match at Twickenham, who is famous for her appearances in shows like the Netflix smash hit, Bridgerton.
British No 1 tennis star Raducanu is currently taking a break from the sport after a troubled end to her season saw her struggling to play in the burning heat in Asia.
She has come exhibition matches on her agenda of the next few weeks before flying to Australia next month to start her preparations for the first Grand Slam of 2026.
Raducanu is due to team up with British No 1 male player Jack Draper in the United Cup event before playing at the Australian Open.
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