sport news Emma Raducanu's OUTRAGEOUS Generation Z reaction to Wimbledon defeat proves ... trends now
Well done, Emma Raducanu, you made it to the second round of Wimbledon before bombing out to the 55th best player in the world.
So what if you are the reigning US Open champion, Britain's latest sporting sweetheart and carried the hopes of a Covid-battered nation on your slender 19-year-old shoulders?
So what if you bowed out with barely a whimper and walked off centre court smiling and waving in your $60,000 worth of Tiffany and Co-sponsored jewellery?
It's all a joke, right? You said it yourself.
'I didn't really have many expectations of myself,' she told media in her post-match press conference.
Which was a pity because a lot of other people did. Like the ones who had paid big money for tickets in the hope of watching her play later in the tournament. Or the TV broadcasters who paid even bigger money for the rights to show her in action late into the second week.
A smiling, waving Raducanu walks off the court to cheers from the crowd - despite the overhyped golden girl letting Britain down with a shock second-round defeat
'Like, why is there any pressure ... it's a joke,' the 19-year-old said in her post-match press conference - perfectly summing up the attitude of her Generation Z fans
Or just those poor miserable sods in the UK who would have got a lift from seeing their golden girl trying her guts out, fighting tooth and nail on their behalf, like Australians did when Ash Barty won at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and Flinders Park.
Still, what do you care? You've already won the US Open, right? Or as you put it after your latest loss, 'Like, why is there any pressure? I'm still 19. It's a joke. I literally won a Slam.'
Not that anyone really should have been surprised. Ms Raducanu's joyful losing attitude might not have pleased the traditionalists enjoying their strawberries and cream at Wimbledon, but it perfectly encapsulated the attitudes of her adoring Gen Z followers.
As an old sportswriter of the Boomer vintage, I have been noticing their insidious creep for years.
It started when my youngest daughter proudly showed me her participation ribbon after her first primary school sports carnival.
'That's great,' I said. 'Where did you come?'
She looked confused. When I explained the concept of first place, second place, third place, she told me, 'They don't have places. They just give us all a ribbon.'
A few years later I saw the result of the 'every kid gets a prize' phenomenon up close at a high level.
Ranked 11th in the world, with everything to play for in front of her adoring home crowd, the Brit got bundled out in straight sets by the world's No.55 player
In the lead-up to the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games I had taken a particular interest in an Australian swimmer whose coach told me had the potential to be one of our best ever.
I wrote a large magazine feature about him, interviewed his family, including his grandmother. Gave him copies of articles and research information I had collected about his pet event over the years and covered his journey through the trials to selection in the national team.
When it came time for the big race, I was in the press seats at the Dr S.P Mukherjee Swimming Stadium in downtown Delhi, eager to report the arrival of the latest young Australian to follow in the wake of the likes of Kieren Perkins and Grant Hackett.
It didn't happen. He bombed, finishing sixth in a time so far off his best as to be ridiculous.
I went down to the mixed zone to commiserate with him, but he didn't need comforting. He was as happy as Larry. If fact, if not for the lack of Tiffany and Co diamonds, you could say his demeanour was almost Emma Radacanu-esque.
