New York (AFP) – Emma Raducanu bagged her first US Open victory since her fairytale 2021 title triumph on Sunday with a straight sets demolition of Japanese qualifier Ena Shibahara. The Briton was in complete control throughout, breaking Shibahara’s serve routinely on her way to a 6-1, 6-2 drubbing on the Louis Armstrong Stadium showcourt. The win was Raducanu’s first at the US Open since she made history four years ago, winning the championship as a little-known qualifier at the age of 18. She was knocked out in the US Open first round in 2022, missed the 2023 tournament due to injury, and exited in the first round again in 2024.
“I’m very pleased to have come through that match,” Raducanu said afterwards. “First rounds are very challenging always, the nerves, and I wanted to win a match here really bad.” Raducanu admitted that her failure to win in New York since her memorable title triumph four years ago had begun to weigh on her. “It has been on my mind,” she said. “It’s been four years, and it’s a very special tournament for me. I did feel different coming into it this year. I felt like I was doing the right things day-to-day, but still, it’s in the back of your head. So I’m just very pleased to have overcome that.”
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Raducanu added that a rushed start early Sunday had added to her nervousness beforehand. “I was nervous this morning after practice. There’s not much time playing first on,” she said. “You’re kind of rushing to do things. After I came out of the shower, I felt like I kind of just got into the zone, got my match kit on, and that, for me, is a shift of, ‘OK, you’re going to get ready, lock in now.’ Then I relaxed.”
Raducanu, who describes the US Open as her “happy place” despite her record since 2021, said her mood is brightened by seeing familiar faces that she remembers from four years ago. “There was this one security guard who is still here working,” she said. “Whenever I see him, he was there from the very, very start of the first round of quallies, second round, and all the way through to the final, and to see him around is really special.”
The unseeded Raducanu will face either 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova or Indonesia’s Janice Tjen in the second round.
© 2024 AFP
