Emma Raducanu says it was a "pretty surreal experience" to play tennis with Kate Middleton, claims the Duchess is "really down to earth"

Emma Raducanu lavished praise on the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, during a recent interview with People, while recalling a friendly tennis match that the two played sometime back.

Raducanu and Middleton played doubles together at a homecoming event in September, organized to celebrate the 19-year-old's US Open win. The teenager claimed it was a "pretty surreal experience" to share the court with Kate Middleton.

Raducanu asserted that the Duchess had no airs about her status in society, due to which she seemed "down to earth and normal".

"It was kind of crazy, but she was really down to earth and normal," Raducanu said. "So I found it a really cool experience."

Middleton, 39, has been the face of the royal family in recent years, indulging in several public activities. She is also an active supporter of several charities and hospitals, especially for children.

As such, Emma Raducanu believes that the Duchess of Cambridge is a "great inspiration" for every Brit.

"I think the Duchess is such a great inspiration, just with how she handles everything and how she does so much good work for charities," Raducanu said. "She's a real inspiration to the whole country."

"I really respect, and I'm so grateful for the sacrifices that they made" - Emma Raducanu pays tribute to her parents

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In the same interview, Emma Raducanu also spoke about the "sacrifices" made by her parents Ian and Renee in shaping her career as a tennis player.

Raducanu recalled how she spent most of her growing years alone at school since both her parents had full-time jobs. The reigning US Open champion elaborated on her tennis training schedule before expressing her gratitude to her parents for all their efforts towards her life and career.

"They have full-time jobs," Raducanu said of her parents. "So, I mean, from a young age I was at school alone or at childminders. And then I'd play tennis at 7:00 a.m. in the morning and then maybe at 8:00 p.m. in the evening under the floodlights and in the rain on the artificial clay courts.

"So I think looking back, just to see how far I've come, and their support, for them to bring me to this stage, I really respect and I'm so grateful for the sacrifices that they made," she added.

Raducanu further stressed how her parents have ensured that she remains humble despite her success.

"They're really good at keeping me on the ground and really good at keeping me focused and just plugging away a day at a time, not getting too high with the wins or too low with the losses," Raducanu said.