In a disappointing turn of events, British tennis star Emma Raducanu was defeated in the second round of the Australian Open by Austria’s Anastasia Potapova. The 23rd-seeded Raducanu, who was aiming to reach the third round for the second successive year, fell to a 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 loss against the 55th-ranked Potapova.
Raducanu, the former US Open champion, appeared to struggle with her form and movement throughout the match, making uncharacteristic mistakes across various aspects of her game. The British number one lacked the usual certainty in her forehand, which she had recently tweaked, and a wild drive volley at a crucial stage in the first set, along with a double fault to hand Potapova a break for 4-1 in the second set, further added to her discomfort.
Raducanu’s off-season preparations were disrupted by a foot injury, and she did not return to the court for hitting sessions until 20 December. While she managed to overcome a first-round opponent ranked 197th, Raducanu looked undercooked against the Russian-born Potapova, who also made a significant number of errors in a poor-quality first set.
The match started with five consecutive breaks of serve before Raducanu managed to pull away. However, she was unable to serve out the first set, and Potapova promptly claimed the tiebreaker. After a lengthy break at the end of the set, Potapova made a fast start to the second, breaking Raducanu twice to take a 3-0 lead.
Despite an exchange of breaks, Potapova ultimately asserted her authority and cruised to victory, with a subdued Raducanu making an early exit from the tournament. This loss serves as a stark reminder of the work Raducanu still has to do to reach the level that saw her triumph at the US Open in 2021.
Elsewhere, British qualifier Arthur Fery was also knocked out of the Australian Open, suffering a 7-6 (7-4), 6-1, 6-3 defeat to Argentina’s Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the men’s second round.
