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Emma Raducanu says she is not feeling “demotivated” despite her miserable record against five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek continuing in a one-sided French Open defeat.
The British number two was outclassed in a 6-1 6-2 second-round exit which means she has lost all five of her matches against the world number five.
It was another reminder of the gulf that still exists between 41st-ranked Raducanu and the leading players on the WTA Tour.
Raducanu, who has never won a set against Swiatek, says she feels the 23-year-old from Poland is “always fired up” when they meet.
“It really puts a lot of pressure on from the beginning, makes me feel like I have to maybe do something extra or I just don’t know what to do in the moment,” said the 22-year-old.
“I think it does shift the dynamics of the match a bit, and then it’s very difficult to stay with her as she grows in confidence.
“It just shows, I guess, the distance that I have to improve.”
After being unable to convert a break point in the opening game, Raducanu quickly lost her way as Swiatek rattled off five games in a row.
The Briton’s second serve was placed under serious pressure and her groundstrokes became increasingly ragged as the defending champion took the opening set in 35 minutes.
Swiatek, who has won four of the past five Roland Garros titles and is known as the ‘Queen of Clay’ because of her formidable record here, quickly moved a break ahead at 2-1 in the second set.
After a below-par clay-court swing, though, there are some questions about her form and they resurfaced when Raducanu threatened to break back immediately.
But Swiatek managed to maintain her intensity under pressure – one of the key differences between players of her status and her opponent – to save three break points in a lengthy fourth game.
Raducanu, who was sick before her opening match on Monday, began to run out of steam and lost the final three games with little resistance.
“There are certain things I just know I need to do better. Against the top players, I can’t hide away from that,” admitted the 2021 US Open champion.
“But I don’t feel demotivated.”
‘A long way to go to where I want to be’
Looking at the bigger picture, Raducanu has made encouraging strides over the past three months.
She has climbed back into the top 50 after an injury-hit couple of years, showing progress by reaching the Miami Open quarter-finals and the Italian Open last 16.
That has been a benefit of playing with more freedom since appointing Mark Petchey as her coach in an “informal” arrangement in March.
Against Swiatek, though, she was unable to do that.
“I think I have made progress since January, maybe not in this match, but in general,” said Raducanu, who also lost 6-1 6-0 to Swiatek at the Australian Open four months ago.
“I do think I’ve improved and I think the way I’ve been going about things has been a lot better and lot more consistent.
“But there is a long way to go to where I want to be.”
While a more rigid approach was caused partly by her opponent’s depth of return and ability to change angles, Raducanu’s ball-striking was also well below her best.
Sticking in the rallies with the fifth seed was a tough task and demonstrated how difficult Raducanu still finds returning ball after ball against the intensity of the top stars.
It was a similar story against American world number two Coco Gauff on the Rome clay earlier this month.
While Raducanu has undoubtedly made progress with her resilience, the fact she has only won three of her 14 career matches against top-10 players indicates she still has to improve.
“There is a big difference as you go up into the top five and then playing Grand Slam champions, it is a completely different ball game,” she added.
“[Against Swiatek] you just don’t really feel like there is that much space on the court, and in certain moments you overhit, because you just feel constant pressure.
“I definitely think I can improve certain areas of my game to maybe make me feel like I have less holes.”
‘I won’t hide in a hole’ – focus turns to Wimbledon
Clay is not her natural surface, it must be remembered, and beating Swiatek on the red dirt is one of the most difficult challenges in the game.
But a smiling Raducanu told BBC Sport: “I don’t want to go and hide in a hole, so it’s OK.
“I need to get over it over the next few days and then get on the court and work to be better.”
Raducanu will now turn her attention to the grass-court season, starting with a home WTA tournament at Queen’s, which starts in less than a fortnight.
She plans to play further events in Berlin and Eastbourne before Wimbledon starts on 30 June.
“I want to go into Wimbledon having had more matches on the surface,” added Raducanu.
“I’ve not played on the grass for a whole year so it’s something new and not much time to turn over.”