Final Up to date: January 03, 2023, 16:36 IST
Former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu overcame wind and rain in a match that stretched over virtually 4 hours to beat Linda Fruhvirtova 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 Tuesday in her first singles match of 2023 on the ASB Traditional.
The match was twice interrupted by rain and the second delay within the deciding set pressured the gamers from the court docket for nearly an hour.
Raducanu returned to take cost by instantly breaking the 17-year-old Fruhvirtova for a 2-0 lead and happening to serve for the match at 5-0.
Fruhvirtova broke again for 5-1, then saved 4 match factors on serve in a tenacious try and preserve the competition alive.
Raducanu fell behind 0-30 in her subsequent service recreation however recovered with a sequence of huge serves and eventually secured the win in just below two and a half hours of court docket time, not counting delays.
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“I feel it’s like 4 hours later. Truthfully, I don’t know what time it’s anymore,” Raducanu stated. “What a battle. Linda is such an awesome younger participant and it was a unique dynamic for me as a result of normally, I’m the youthful one. Going into this match she is and he or she’s going to be up there for positive, she already is.”
Raducanu, who’s 20, was taking part in her first aggressive match in 2 1-2 months and needed to battle exhausting towards the Czech teenager, who received a decent first set in 53 minutes.
The primary and shorter rain delay got here at 4-4 within the first set. Fruhvirtova took an early 2-0 lead within the second set however Raducanu broke again for 2-2 and went on to take the set in 46 minutes.
The second rain break got here with Raducanu main 1-0 within the third set. She received the subsequent 4 video games and finally the match with a marked elevate in aggression. Whereas her serve was sturdy, her return of serve was decisive and he or she received 65% of the factors of Fruhvirtova’s second serve.
Prime-seeded American Coco Gauff additionally needed to take care of two prolonged rain delays earlier than beating Germany’s Tatjana Maria 6-4, 6-1.
The seventh-ranked Gauff had let slip a 4-0 lead within the first set and Maria was serving at 4-3 when a cloudburst pressured the gamers from the court docket. Play resumed briefly and Gauff improved her result in 5-4 when the second rain break occurred.
Gauff returned to win six straight video games to open a 5-0 lead within the second set earlier than Maria held serve once more. Gauff calmly served out the match for her first win of the 12 months.
“Truthfully, prefer it wasn’t powerful as a result of I used to be anticipating (the rain) to occur,” Gauff stated. “In between the rain delays I received a little bit of assist from my coach.
“However I’m from Florida and we’re kinda used to the stop-start, stop-start. It’s the tropical climate.”
Raducanu’s second-round opponent might be Slovakia qualifier Viktoria Kuzmova, who upset fourth-seeded Bernarda Pera 6-4, 6-4.
Kuzmova took benefit of a powerful first serve to win key factors in a decent contest whereas Pera, the Croatia-born American, struggled in windy circumstances and had 9 double faults.
After profitable the primary set, Kuzmova dropped 3-0 behind within the second earlier than reeling off 5 straight video games. She had two match factors on Pera’s serve at 5-3 however the Forty fourth-ranked Pera saved each. She saved two extra as Kuzmova served for the match at 5-4, lastly clinching the match along with her ninth ace.
“In such a climate when it’s actually windy I knew all the pieces is feasible,” Kuzmova stated. “I simply tried to remain constructive and go for each ball and I’m very completely happy that I received the second set.”
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(This story has not been edited by News18 employees and is printed from a syndicated information company feed)