Emma Raducanu still has so much to improve and it is far too early to declare her a contender to win every tournament, according to Tim Henman.

The 18-year-old achieved stunning success at the US Open, winning the grand slam event as a qualifier without dropping a set.

Raducanu will play her first match since that famous Flushing Meadows triumph when she takes on Aliaksandra Sasnovich at the Indian Wells Open on Friday.

The youngster has been rated as favourite to win the tournament, which is seen as one of the most prestigious outside of the four majors.

There is already talk of her qualifying for the lucrative season-ending WTA Finals and triumphing at Wimbledon next year, having burst onto the scene in 2021 by reaching round four at All England Club.

But fellow Briton Henman urged fans to show caution with what they expect from Raducanu before her first match in 27 days against seasoned pro Sasnovich.

Raducanu has regularly discussed her lack of experience at tour level while she searches for a new coach to show her the ropes and Henman did not want to entertain discussions of her winning Wimbledon in 2022.

"I think that is probably getting a little ahead of ourselves," Henman said to talkSPORT. 

"She has shown her enormous potential by what she did in New York, but she is still so young and so inexperienced. 

"She has played so few events on the tour, let alone at grand slam level. I think it’s very easy to get ahead of ourselves.

"Regarding some of the young up and coming players, to really understand where they are at and their development, for me you get a very good insight once they have played every tournament twice.

"To put it into context, she has never played the clay court swing, she’s never played Roland Garros, she has never played the Australian Open.

"Once she has played all those events twice, then we will be able to assess where her game is at.

"Right now, it is as much about the process as the outcome and keep developing her game."

Henman, though, was in no doubt that Raducanu is a prodigious talent.

He added: "What is exciting is that she can improve in so many areas. 

"It is easy to focus on her tennis game, but she can get fitter, stronger, faster and gain experience playing at the highest level and continue improving her tennis game.

"If she does that then I think she will go on and win more tournaments in the future.

"It was a privilege to be on the side of the court for all her main draw matches and just see the quality of her tennis at close quarters.

"Her resilience mentally, her composure and the consistency was incredible. To win 20 straight sets to qualify and win a grand slam is unprecedented in our sport, it was a real pleasure to watch."

While Raducanu received a first-round bye, Sasnovich had an easy opener as she beat Maria Camila Osorio Serrano in straight sets.

The Belarusian has never won a WTA Tour event or reached the last eight of a major.

Kim Clijsters' first appearance at the Indian Wells Open in a decade did not last long, the two-time champion eliminated in the opening round.

Clijsters remains winless since coming out of retirement on the WTA Tour, falling 6-1 2-6 6-2 to Katerina Siniakova on Thursday. 

A four-time grand slam champion, the 38-year-old Clijsters has lost all five of her singles matches since her return last year. 

"I think overall, there's definitely moments where I'm feeling really good out there, and there's moments where I feel too inconsistent," Clijsters – a winner at Indian Wells in 2003 and 2005 – told reporters.

"That's part of this process in general, it's not going to be a smooth ride, and that's what I'm going to try to improve every time I'm out there."

World number 53 Siniakova converted six of nine break points on Clijsters' serve and moved on to face 10th seed Angelique Kerber at the WTA Premier 1000 event.

GOLUBIC HOLDS OFF VONDROUSOVA

The day's only duel between top-50 players saw world number 46 Viktorija Golubic outlast 37th-ranked Marketa Vondrousova 6-1 4-6 6-3. 

Both players struggled with their own service games, combining for three aces and 17 double faults, but it was the Swiss who managed to convert on eight of 14 break-point chances and come out on top. 

It was Golubic's first win against a player in the top 50 since joining those ranks herself in July; she had been 0-3 against them since then. 

GARCIA RALLIES PAST FLIPKENS, RISKE GETS RARE INDIAN WELLS WIN

Caroline Garcia fought back to defeat Kirsten Flipkens 5-7 6-4 6-0 in a match that took two hours, nine minutes to complete, firing seven aces and winning 71.2 per cent of points on her first serve. 

The Frenchwoman, who had been upset by qualifiers at her two previous tournaments in Ostrava and Chicago, meets 15th seed Coco Gauff in the second round. 

Alison Riske celebrated a victory for just the second time in seven trips to Indian Wells, cruising past qualifier Liang En-shuo 6-2 6-2 to set up a second-round matchup against 16th seed and former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu. 

Former US Open champion Sloane Stephens had to come from behind to progress against Heather Watson after almost three hours in the Indian Wells Open first round.

Stephens, who is currently ranked 73rd in the world, having been number three on the WTA Tour in 2018, triumphed 6-7 (5-7) 7-5 6-1 over Watson in two hours, 50 minutes on Wednesday.

In a see-sawing match, there were six breaks in the opening set, as Watson got the edge early on Stephens' serve at the WTA Premier 1000 event.

Stephens steadied by claiming a late break in the second to level the match, before dominating the third set.

Playing at her 10th Indian Wells Open, Stephens won seven consecutive games after the match was 5-5 in the second set.

"After the first set, that was disappointing to lose that one, but I felt like it was a battle and I was still in the match," Stephens said. "I knew I had to keep fighting and that's what I did, and I'm just really pleased to have squeaked out a win here."

KEYS ON SONG IN OPENER

Former world number seven Madison Keys moved through to the second round with a 6-0 7-5 win over fast-finishing Estonian veteran Kaia Kanepi.

American Keys won 21 consecutive points as part of a streak where she clinched the first nine games of the match, withstanding Kenapi's late push.

Keys will take on Russian ninth seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a spot in the third round.

SAMSONOVA, MARTIC, ROGERS AND PUTINTSEVA PROGRESS

Liudmila Samsonova, who made the fourth round at Wimbledon earlier this year, needed more than two hours to get past Ukrainian qualifier Kateryna Kozlova 6-4 7-6 (8-6).

Samsonova will face countrywoman and 25th seed Veronika Kudermetova in the second round.

Petra Martic won through to take on second seed Iga Swiatek with a 6-4 6-4 victory over American wildcard Katie Volynets.

Ash Barty's US Open conqueror Shelby Rogers claimed her 25th win for the year, getting past Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina 7-6 (7-2) 6-2, while Yulia Putintseva won 7-6 (7-2) 6-1 over experienced German Andrea Petkovic to set up a showdown with fellow Kazakh player and 13th seed Elena Rybakina.

Emma Raducanu said she will not be rushed into appointing a new coach as the US Open champion prepares to make her Indian Wells debut this week.

Teen sensation Raducanu made history when she became the first qualifier to win a grand slam title at Flushing Meadows last month.

The 18-year-old split from coach Andrew Richardson following her stunning triumph in New York, revealing she wants to work with someone who has greater WTA Tour experience. 

Raducanu will work with Jeremy Bates, the Lawn Tennis Association's national coach, when she plays her first tournament as a major champion at the Indian Wells Open in California.

The Brit, who will face Maria Camila Osorio Serrano or Aliaksandra Sasnovich first up after being given a bye into the second round, will take her time to mull over who will be her permanent coach.

She said in a press conference on Tuesday: "Jeremy is part of women's tennis at the LTA so while he's here he's helping me out.

"But going forwards I'm just going to wait and find the right person, I'm not going to rush into anything. I want to make sure I make the right decision.

"Even though I'm quite young I've got a lot of experience banked and at the end of the day you're out there on your own and you have to be your own coach on the court, so I'm pretty comfortable."

Raducanu is relishing being back in action after a whirlwind few weeks off the court following her US Open heroics.

"I'm very excited to be here," Raducanu added.

"It's my first time playing in Indian Wells, and it's a beautiful place. I just can't wait to get started. I love the facilities, everything is just so nice to be around.

"I don't really want to change anything. What got me to this point is not thinking anything differently so if I put additional thoughts in my head then that will just create a problem I think. I'm just going to keep going about my business and staying the same.

"It's been a very cool three weeks. I got to experience some great things that I probably never would have got to do before but after that I just went straight back to training and focusing on this competition and the upcoming ones that I've got lined up."

Garbine Muguruza stormed back from a set and a break down to beat Ons Jabeur and claim the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic title on Sunday.

Muguruza drew on all of her fighting spirit to claim a second title of the season and take her tally of tournament triumphs to nine, winning 3-6 6-3 6-0.

In a showdown between two players chasing a WTA Finals spot, the second seed from Spain was twice a break down in the second set after losing the first but battled back to force a deciding set and then inflicted a bagel on sixth seed Jabeur.

Victory for the second seed moved her up to sixth in the battle to play in the season-ending tournament in Guadalajara, while Jabeur is still in the mix in ninth - with the top eight qualifying.

Jabeur won the only break of the opening set with a backhand winner to move into a 3-1 lead and broke again in the opening game of the second.

Muguruza broke straight back, though, and Jabeur again failed to consolidate a break after going 3-2 up.

Two-time grand slam champion Muguruza turned the tide in spectacular fashion, winning the second set before her momentum was briefly halted by a rain delay.

Muguruza picked up where she left off in the final set, stretching her run of consecutive games won to 10 as she got her hands on another trophy.

Aryna Sabalenka will not play at Indian Wells after announcing she has tested positive for coronavirus.

In an Instagram Story post, the world number two revealed she feels "okay" while isolating after her COVID-19 result, though is "really sad" not to be playing in the tournament this year.

Sabalenka had been due to return to action for the first time since losing at the semi-final stage of the US Open last month.

"Unfortunately, I've tested positive at Indian Wells and won’t be able to compete," the Belarusian posted on Sunday.

"I've started my isolation and I’ll be staying here until I’m cleared by the doctors and health officials. So far I'm feeling okay but really sad to not be able to play this year."

The absence of Sabalenka is a further blow for the event, considering world number one Ash Barty had already pulled out.

Naomi Osaka is another big-name absentee, along with Serena Williams, while the men's edition is minus Novak Djokovic after the five-time champion opted to withdraw.

Emma Raducanu will be involved, however, after the US Open champion accepted a wild card, while Kim Clijsters has done the same as she prepares to continue her comeback with a first appearance at Indian Wells in a decade.

Andy Murray is a wild-card entrant for the men's tournament, with the main draw beginning on Wednesday.

Emma Raducanu has been given a wildcard entry to the Indian Wells Open in her first tournament since winning the US Open.

The 18-year-old claimed a sensational triumph at Flushing Meadows earlier this month, becoming the first qualifier to take a major title.

Raducanu defeated fellow unseeded teenager Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in the final of only her second grand slam.

The Briton did not drop a set throughout her fairytale run and climbed from 150th in the WTA rankings to now sit 22nd.

And Raducanu's remarkable display has earned her the opportunity to enjoy further stateside success at Indian Wells, having missed the cut when the entry list was first announced during the US Open.

She still has an outside chance of making the WTA Finals in Guadalajara, with appearances planned at tournaments in Russia and Romania later in October.

Raducanu's hopes of another deep run at Indian Wells have been boosted by the absence of superstar pair Naomi Osaka and Ash Barty, who have both withdrawn from the event.

Wimbledon champion and world number one Ash Barty has withdrawn from this month's Indian Wells Open. 

The Australian has not played since her surprise third-round defeat to Shelby Rogers at the US Open last month. 

Barty follows four-time grand slam champion Naomi Osaka in pulling out of the California event, the final WTA 1000 tournament of the year. 

The 25-year-old had indicated after her defeat at Flushing Meadows that she planned to play at Indian Wells. 

Defending champion Bianca Andreescu heads a strong field, with world number two Aryna Sabalenka, Wimbledon finalist Karolina Pliskova, French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova, Olympic bronze medalist Elina Svitolina and last year's Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin all taking part. 

Three other previous winners – Simona Halep, Elena Vesnina and Victoria Azarenka – will also be present, along with teenager Leylah Fernandez, who reached the US Open final. 

Kim Clijsters saw her latest WTA Tour comeback ended by Hsieh Su-wei at the Chicago Fall Tennis Classic on Monday.

The four-time grand slam champion, playing in her first match of 2021, was defeated 6-3 5-7 6-3 in a contest lasting two hours and 18 minutes on Stadium Court.

Clijsters, who retired in 2012, made her return to the Tour last year, losing her three matches.

After knee surgery at the end of 2020 and having contracted COVID-19 this year, the 38-year-old at last made her first appearance of the season but was bested in a gruelling contest by Australian Open quarter-finalist Hsieh.

Speaking prior to her return in Chicago, Clijsters spoke of how she was drawing inspiration from Andy Murray, who continues on the ATP circuit despite two major hip surgeries.

"Seeing Andy Murray and the way he speaks about his comeback and everything, it's so motivating and it gives you a lot of energy too," she said. "To see him go through the things he's gone through and be open about the challenges of it and the belief that he has, I feel like it's something I can relate to."

Seeds Jessia Pagula, Danielle Collins and Veronika Kudermetova all progressed in Chicago on Monday, although home favourite Madison Keys had to retire from her match with Aliaksandra Sasnovich.

Naomi Osaka is going to play tennis again and expects to feed her itch to return to the tour "soon".

Osaka said in the wake of her shock US Open third-round defeat to teenager Leylah Fernandez that she would take a break from the sport.

"I honestly don't know when I'm going to play my next tennis match. I think I'm going to take a break from playing for a while," Osaka told her post-match media conference following that loss.

She subsequently pulled out of Indian Wells but the four-time grand slam champion, who withdrew from the French Open back in May to protect her mental health, does not anticipate her absence being an extended one.

"I know I'm gonna play again, probably soon because I kind of have that itch again," Osaka told HBO's 'The Shop'.

"But it wouldn't really matter to me if I won or lost. I'd just have the joy of being back on the court.

"Just to, like, you know, that I'm doing it for myself."

Explaining her unhappiness on the court, Osaka added: "I started to feel like that power was being taken away from me.

"And the way that I felt, like, I wasn't playing to make myself happy and I was more concerned about … what would people say about me.

"I used to love the competition and just being competitive. Like if I were to play a long match, the longer it was the more fun it was for me.

"And then I just started to feel – recently – the longer it was the more stressed out I became. But I just needed a break to go within myself."

Anett Kontaveit sealed a second title of the season as she overcame Maria Sakkari in straight sets at the Ostrava Open.

The unseeded Estonian, who is ranked 30th in the world, saw off fourth seed Sakkari 6-2 7-5 to claim the trophy in the Czech Republic.

Kontaveit has now won two tournaments in four weeks, having won in Cleveland last month to end a four-year wait since winning her first title in 2017.

This was Sakkari's first final in over two years as well, but Kontaveit cruised past the Greek in just over an hour and a half as she did not drop a set all week.

That flawless level of tennis saw her eliminate Petra Kvitova, Paula Badosa and Belinda Bencic en route to the final, where the 25-year-old faced only one break point as she powered to a comfortable victory over a player who reached semi-finals at the French Open and US Open this year.

Sakkari managed more of a fight in the second set, where she battled for her sole break point, but Kontaveit breezed past any pressure and kept her serve to maintain control.

Sakkari, who is likely to move into the top 10 despite losing, had boasted a 5-3 head-to-head record in main-draw clashes between the pair coming into Sunday's final, but 23 unforced errors outnumbered the 20 winners from her racket as Kontaveit collected her most notable title to date.

Anett Kontaveit beat Olympic champion Belinda Bencic and will face home favourite Petra Kvitova for a place in the Ostrava Open final.

Estonian Kontaveit, ranked 30th in the world, claimed her fourth top-20 win of the season as she prevailed 6-4 6-3 on Friday.

Kontaveit also defeated Bencic in the 2020 Australian Open, meaning she is 2-0 in their head-to-head rivalry.

Czech left-hander Kvitova awaits in the last four, after the second seed defeated Bencic's Swiss compatriot Jil Teichmann 6-4 6-4.

Teichmann beat Kvitova in their only previous meeting, but the world number 10 had too much on this occasion, along with the backing of the crowd to boot as she chases a 29th singles title of her career.

The other semi-final will see top seed Iga Swiatek face Maria Sakkari.

Last year's French Open winner Swiatek reached her first semi-final since May – when she landed the prestigious title in Rome – by overcoming Elena Rybakina 7-6 (7-5) 6-2.

Sakkari, meanwhile, ended Tereza Martincova's hopes in straight sets.

Greek star Sakkari ended Swiatek's reign as Roland Garros champion in June, beating the Polish 20-year-old in the quarter-finals in Paris.

US Open champion Emma Raducanu has split from coach Andrew Richardson and wants to partner with someone with greater WTA Tour experience. 

Richardson had coached Raducanu in her younger days at Bromley Tennis Centre and accompanied the 18-year-old for her campaign at Flushing Meadows. 

The experience proved unforgettable as the Briton, ranked 150 in the world at the time and having played in just one other major previously (Wimbledon in July), took the title after moving through qualifying and the main draw without dropping a set. 

She became the youngest grand slam finalist since Maria Sharapova won Wimbledon as a 17-year-old in 2004 and is the only qualifier in tennis history to win a major final. 

Her astonishing triumph catapulted her to 22 in the WTA rankings and Raducanu is now looking for someone to guide her through the next phase of her career. 

Speaking at a homecoming event organised by the Lawn Tennis Association, she said: "Where I was at after Wimbledon, I was ranked around 200 in the world and at the time I thought Andrew would be a great coach to trial, so we went to the States but never did I even dream of winning the US Open and having the run I did, and now I'm ranked 22 in the world, which is pretty crazy to me. 

"I feel like at this stage in my career, and playing the top players in the world, I realised I really need someone right now that has had that WTA Tour experience at the high levels, which means that I'm looking for someone who has been at that level and knows what it takes. 

"And especially right now because I'm so new to it, I really need someone to guide me who has already been through that. 

"Obviously having such an experience with your team, it's tough to have that conversation with anyone, but I think for me, it's just really what I need." 

It has been suggested Raducanu could look to partner with Darren Cahill, the renowned coach who split with Simona Halep this month. 

For now, she is considering when to make a competitive return to action, with the notable Indian Wells Open coming up. 

"I'll decide in the next few days where I'm going to go to but, wherever I play next, I'm going to make sure I'm ready. I don't want to jump into things too early," she said. 

Olympic gold medallist Belinda Bencic eased to a straight-sets win over Sara Sorribes Tormo to maintain her good form and book a place in the Ostrava Open quarter-finals.

Third seed Bencic needed just 88 minutes to see off her 36th-ranked opponent as she made it 15 victories from her past 18 matches.

Czech wildcard Tereza Martincova is also through to the last eight on home soil after battling past French Open finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (8-6).

Martincova is into her fifth quarter-final of the season and will take on number four seed Maria Sakkari, who saw off Jelena Ostapenko 6-4 6-2 earlier on Thursday.

Also through to round three is Elena Rybakina following a hard-fought 6-3 2-6 6-1 win over qualifier Magda Linette, while Jil Teichmann – who shocked former world number one Angelique Kerber in the previous round – advanced in three sets against Alison Riske.

She will face Petra Kvitova for a place in the semi-finals. 

Former world number one Naomi Osaka unsurprisingly withdrew from next month's Indian Wells Masters, having flagged a break from tennis following her US Open meltdown.

The tournament confirmed 2018 champion Osaka's absence on Wednesday, with the Indian Wells Masters scheduled to take place from October 4-17 after the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Osaka's US Open title defence came crashing down in a remarkable 5-7 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 third-round capitulation at the hands of eventual finalist Leylah Fernandez earlier this month.

Up a set and serving for the match at 6-5 on Arthur Ashe Stadium, four-time major champion Osaka lost her cool and composure after throwing her racquet three times in an unsuccessful second-set tie-break.

Amid boos in New York, Japanese star Osaka was also warned after hitting a ball into the crowd at Flushing Meadows.

After the surprise exit, Osaka told reporters she planned to "take a break from playing for a while."

She added: "I feel like for me recently, like, when I win I don't feel happy. I feel more like a relief. And then when I lose, I feel very sad. I don't think that's normal. I didn't really want to cry.

"I feel like… this is very hard to articulate. I feel like I'm kind of at this point where I'm trying to figure out what I want to do, and I honestly don't know when I'm going to play my next tennis match [tearing up]. Sorry."

It comes following a difficult couple of months due to mental health concerns as a result of "long bouts of depression" since winning the 2018 US Open.

Osaka withdrew from May's French Open having won her first-round match, after she was fined and threatened with further punishment – and possible expulsion from the grand slam – for skipping obligatory media duties.

She subsequently pulled out of Wimbledon before returning for the Olympic Games, though she suffered a surprise loss on home soil in Tokyo and was reduced to tears during a news conference in Cincinnati.