Emma Raducanu spoke out after welling up during her win over Jaqueline Cristian at the Korea Open. The Brit secured progression into the next round with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over her Romanian opponent, but it wasn’t plain sailing at all.
Despite the straight-sets win, Raducanu struggled at times and was even seen holding back the tears midway through the first set. The one-time Grand Slam champion was wiping her eyes and looked visibly emotional while on court against the 27-year-old.
The preparation for the first-round match was disruptive to say the least, with Raducanu having pulled out of the British squad for the Billie Jean King Cup in an attempt to gain crucial ranking points. What’s more, the match was originally meant to take place on Tuesday, but a deluge in South Korea saw the contest delayed to Wednesday.
Raducanu explained that the disruptions had caused her to feel emotional during the win, explaining: “Super happy to have won today. It hasn’t been easy, I feel like I’ve played this match the last three days.
“To have pulled through after waiting, I’m super pleased with how I came through. Jaqueline is a really tough opponent and had great results recently. Tough conditions, very slow, long rallies, long points, so happy to have gotten through.”
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It’s been a year of getting back on track for Raducanu after a 2024 blighted by injury. For the first time since 2022, the 22-year-old competed at all four Slam tournaments, and for the first time since winning at Flushing Meadows in 2021, Raducanu progressed beyond the first round of the US Open.
But former tennis professional Mark Petchey has called on Raducanu to decide on a long-term coaching plan. He told tennis betting site BetVictor, Petchey said: “I think that’s part of the puzzle for Emma. She needs to figure out what she needs.
“I think she needs to decide whether she needs somebody on the road permanently or whether she just needs somebody back at base and then someone to travel with her. She’s in the process of figuring that out. I don’t know where that’s at. That’s a piece of the puzzle that needs a solution and I’m sure she’ll get there.”
Because of the delayed match against Cristian, it’s a quick turnaround for the second round match against Barbora Krejcíkova, which is pencilled in for Thursday afternoon. The winner of that clash will come up against either Sorana Cirstea or Iga Swiatek in round three.