Friday, March 29

Emma Raducanu loses the first game of the year in 55 minutes to Elena Rybakina | Emma raducanu


Over the course of her first full season as a full-time professional on the WTA tour, Emma Raducanu will come to experience far too much frustration and disappointment as she adjusts to life on the road. In Sydney, her inaugural tournament of the season, Raducanu endured her first experience of such emotions when she was defeated 6-0, 6-1 by Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan in 55 minutes.

Then, as Raducanu quickly congratulated his opponent, he explained that his expectations had been low. He was still finding his way back after testing positive for covid in December. Raducanu says that he did not play for 21 days in total and that he was only starting to play points in the last few days. He had already withdrawn from his first tournament of the year in Melbourne.

“It is difficult, but it is good because I am very proud and happy to have put in the effort,” she said. “I could easily have said it’s too early and just play next week, but I really wanted to test where I am and obviously give me some competitive points and games. I think this will help put me in a better place for next week. “

Regardless, Rybakina is one of the most talented young players in the WTA and possesses a destructive game. Also, she had come to Sydney after having reached the final in Adelaide last week, losing to Ashleigh Barty. She was ready and she just dominated, shooting winners from all over the court.

Raducanu has played very few players with the kazaja’s shooting ability, with her great speed, weight and depth continually putting pressure on Raducanu, who contributed to the one-sided score by struggling with her serve.

Also Read  Discovered 132,000 new virus species after reviewing millions of biological samples | Science

Rybakina triumphed through the first nine games of the match and it was only when Raducanu trailed 6-0, 3-0 that he finally secured his first game, forcing a backhand error from Rybakina with some defense at the game point. With a game finally on the board, Raducanu raised his fist and smiled at his supporters and his team. “I was just not going to lose love and love,” he said. “So that was my motivation.”

Andy Murray recognizes the crowd after his victory in the first round.
Andy Murray recognizes the crowd after his victory in the first round. Photograph: Steven Markham / Speed ​​Media / Shutterstock

Raducanu could use no more games, but he gathered up his bags and looked to see how he could improve. “After the game I bought a box of balls and went straight to the practice field. I felt like I could have done some things better in the match, and I wanted to try to fix it right away, just leave with a better feeling about it. So, yeah, we went to the court.

In his first game of the season, Raducanu lost, badly, but finished his duties with a smile on his face. “Yeah, I was just fighting,” he said. “I mean, at the end of the day I just want to keep exposing myself. Even if I keep getting knocked down and it’s just about getting back up and basically falling to the front. You are one step better. You learn more.

In the first game of the night session in Sydney, Andy Murray had won his first game of the season to advance to the second round with a spirited 6-3, 6-1 victory over Viktor Durasovic in Sydney. Murray will next face Nikoloz Basilashvili, whom he defeated at Wimbledon last year.

Also Read  Silvio Berlusconi withdraws from the race for the presidency of the Italian Republic
Fast guide

How do I subscribe to breaking sports news alerts?

Show

  • Download the Guardian app from the iOS App Store on iPhones or the Google Play store on Android phones by searching for ‘The Guardian’.
  • If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you have the latest version.
  • In the Guardian app, tap the yellow button at the bottom right, then go to Settings (the gear icon) and then Notifications.
  • Activate sports notifications.

Thank you for your comments.

While Murray did not catch COVID in the offseason and was one of the few players who traveled to Abu Dhabi not to, he said his offseason was also interrupted anyway because he caught a cold and did not. t train for 10 days.

But Murray is now in Sydney with his new coach, Jan de Witt, and while discussing his arrangement, he made his ambitions clear: “Obviously, what we both want is results,” he said. “Obviously I don’t know how long I will be able to compete for. I know that injuries can happen at this stage in your career and after going through what I’ve been through the last few years, so, you know, I want instant results. “


www.theguardian.com

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *