Australian Open: Emma Raducanu put her injury concerns to rest in order to have a successful opening round at the Australian Open and set up a thrilling matchup with Coco Gauff in the second round.
The reigning US Open champion, 20, had tape on the left ankle she twisted 11 days earlier in Auckland, but she gained confidence throughout the match and won Tamara Korpatsch 6-3, 6-2 in her first match at Melbourne Park in an hour and 25 minutes.
She stated, “I’m certainly quite thrilled to have advanced to the second round. Coming in with such little preparation and being on the field was always going to be challenging.”
“The past week, I’ve been incredibly controlled in everything I’ve done. In order to test it out in a real match and given the unpredictable nature of it all, I had to first become used to it. But it was enjoyable.”
View this post on Instagram
Gauff, the seventh seed who beat Katerina Siniakova 6-1 6-4, will present a very different task as she attempts to follow Raducanu’s example by winning a Grand Slam.
Gauff, who is over a year younger than Raducanu, has played on the main circuit for three and a half years already, making it into the top 10 and building the kind of solid foundation that her next opponent is still looking for.
Raducanu was warmly welcomed on a crowded mid-sized 1537 Arena, but she appeared tentative at first when serving and stretched out widely for her backhand.
The crucial point in the first set occurred in the seventh game when Raducanu had twice had a break advantage overturned.
Under her new coach Sebastian Sachs, the British No. 1 has adopted an aggressive stance and attempted to capture the initiative with her forehand.
She clenched her fist in the direction of her team as she made another break, and it paid off as the beginning of a run of six straight victories put her in complete command of the match.
When Korpatsch pushed a forehand long, Raducanu secured the victory by putting a lot more emphasis on her backhand and projecting confidence in her game plan.
She was able to swing freely, in Raducanu’s opinion, because of the ankle injury. She said: “If anything, it kind of alleviates any pressure because you’re like, ‘Well, I’ve done so well to get myself onto the court, and my team has done so well.'”
“Will Herbert, a physiotherapist, has been working on it nonstop. It’s simply a fantastic accomplishment for all of us. Then, since I’m already there, I might as well take advantage of the hard work we’ve put in to get me here.”
I you want to know more about tennis court, tennis live update, latest tennis news, tennis tournament, Australian Open, tennis championship, tennis live score, live tennis news, latest tennis news update and other tennis news follow Livematchupdates.com.
