Emma Raducanu got her singles campaign at Queen’s off to a blistering start in a grudge match with Cristina Bucsa, the dangerous Spaniard who beat her in a brutal three-hour match back in January.
The world No. 37 had already sealed a victory in the doubles alongside Katie Boulter at the new WTA 500 event in West London on Monday, and she made light work of her opening singles match, winning 6-1 6-2 to help her chances of reclaiming the British No. 1 spot.
While they’ve teamed up on the doubles court this week, Raducanu and Boulter are locked in a battle to be the highest-ranked British woman come next Monday when the tournament is over.
For Raducanu, it would be the first time she’d return the British No. 1 since ending her 2023 season early to undergo three surgeries. And the 22-year-old put herself in a perfect position to get back on top as she thrashed Bucsa in an hour and four minutes to reach the second round.
The world No. 37 received a rousing reception as she stepped out onto the newly renamed Andy Murray Arena at the Queen’s Club for the first time. And she impressed the crowd with a ruthless performance.
From 1-1 in the first set, Raducanu won nine games in a row, barely dropping points on serve and leaving Bucsa flustered as the world No. 112 struggled to get a look at the Raducanu serve.
The Spaniard stepped it up towards the end of the second set. She finally got on the board to end Raducanu’s run of games and then had her first opportunity to break, but she couldn’t get it done.
The Brit roared as she saved break point, and a return error from the Bucsa racket allowed Raducanu to get out of her first tight service game.
With just over an hour on the clock, Raducanu stepped up to serve for a spot in the second round. And she got the job done with a winner, sending the ball straight past Bucsa to book her spot in round two.
It comes less than five months after Bucsa outlasted Raducanu in a gruelling three-hour match at the Singapore Tennis Open. The Spaniard came from behind to win 5-7 7-5 7-5, sending Raducanu out in the first round.
And that match was on the Brit’s mind, as she told the crowd: “I must say, I was quite locked in today so I’m very pleased with my performance. I was a little bit nervous for sure at the beginning. It’s my first time playing on this court at Queen’s in London.
“I actually lost to Cristina earlier on in the year and I was really trying to fight and make sure that didn’t happen again, basically! I was really trying to fight and get myself into the second round at Queen’s because I really want to stay here as long as I can.”
After getting her first outing on the Andy Murray Arena, Raducanu added: “ It’s amazing what Andy achieved here in general with his career at Wimbledon, to see him open up the court was immense.
“For us girls to finally have this court after watching the TV and the men playing it’s really nice.”