What went wrong for Raducanu in Melbourne?

When Grand Slam draws are made, we're all guilty of plotting ahead.

It turns out we looked one round too far in the case of Emma Raducanu at the Australian Open.

A potential shot at top seed Aryna Sabalenka loomed in round three, but the British number one fell to a stinging defeat by Austria's Anastasia Potapova on Wednesday.

Raducanu, seeded 28th, was completely out of sorts against 55th-ranked Potapova in a 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 second-round loss.

BBC Sport analyses what went wrong for 23-year-old Raducanu and where she goes from here.

Raducanu made encouraging progress last year, climbing back into the world's top 30 and playing more matches than in any previous season of her career.

However, the off-season technical work she planned to put in with coach Francisco Roig - who helped Rafael Nadal win 16 of his 22 major titles - was compromised by a foot injury.

When Raducanu returned in 2026, a tweak to her forehand - a higher and longer takeback, designed to add more spin - was clear.

But she seemed to lack trust in the shot against Potapova, landing 70% of her forehand returns in - compared to 96% from her opponent - and making 19 unforced errors off that wing.

"I want to be playing a different way. The misalignment with how I'm playing right now and how I want to be playing is something I want to work on," Raducanu said.

"There are definitely pockets of me playing how I want to play, and it comes out in flashes, which is a positive. But it's not how I want to be consistently.

"It's not going to fall into place straight away, but the more I work on how I want to be playing, it will be more of my identity every time I step onto the court."

Raducanu has gone past the third round of a Grand Slam just once since her stunning US Open triumph in 2021.

She won seven matches at the majors last season, but all four of her exits came against the world's leading stars - Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open and French Open, Sabalenka at Wimbledon and Elena Rybakina at the US Open.

Now Raducanu has been beaten by a lower-ranked player at a major for the first time since the 2022 US Open, when she was still 11th in the world.

Mistakes came from all aspects of Raducanu's game against Potapova. She was flat in mood and movement and rarely interacted with her support box or the crowd.

"I didn't feel very well from the start," Raducanu said.

"It was difficult conditions - really windy and lively - and I'd not played many matches and points [in the build-up]."

Given Raducanu's track record of hiring and firing coaches, there will be inevitable questions from some about Roig's future - especially given she admitted she is not playing how she wants to.

Raducanu insists the pair, who began working together in August, are still aligned.

Asked by BBC Sport if they were still on the same page, she said: "I didn't play how I wanted to play because I wasn't hitting any shot particularly well. It's tough to take an assessment when you're completely off.

"Me and Francis have done some amazing work together in the past few months and I've improved so many different aspects of my game.

"I think it's difficult to say we don't agree."

There was little conversation between the pair during her defeat by Potapova and fewer instructions from Roig than when he took up the role.

It was also noticeable when she was struggling early on against 197th-ranked Mananchaya Sawangkaew in the first round.

"I think I've just realised over time that the best way for me to deal with tricky situations is to find the answers from within," she said.

"I feel like when I look over and if I'm questioning something or asking, it's bringing more negativity, whereas I know the answer inside really.

"I think I know what I'm doing. I just try and figure things out more on my own."

A bruised foot ended Raducanu's 2025 season two months early and she did not start hitting again until 20 December - three weeks later than planned.

Raducanu understandably pointed to her lack of preparation as mitigation for the poor performance.

"On 1 January, when I came out here, I hadn't moved from my half of the court," Raducanu said.

"If you would have told me I would have played four or five matches in Australia, regardless of how they went, from a physical perspective it would have been pretty surprising."

Raducanu arrived in Melbourne with just one win under her belt and off the back of a timid defeat by world number 204 Taylah Preston in Hobart.

While she improved to beat Sawangkaew in the Melbourne first round, she was undercooked against Potapova.

"I think with each one I did get better - except today," Raducanu added.

"Having to learn and get the feel through matches is something that's really difficult and not something that I really want to be doing.

"Even if I wasn't very ready, I think I had a good three weeks Down Under on and off the court."