Raducanu inspired by England’s Euro campaign as she ‘earns ugly win’ at Wimbledon

By James Toney at Wimbledon

In the close-quarters sport of Grand Slam tennis, winning ugly has become a mantra and Emma Raducanu is certainly happy to achieve success, however unappealing it may be.

Raducanu, returning to Wimbledon after months out with injuries, was all smiles as she booked her place in the second round with a far from straightforward three-set victory 7-6 6-3 on Centre Court over Mexico’s Renata Zarazua.

Unforced errors don’t mean much if you’re on the right side of the score and while some of her stats may cause irritation, the 21-year-old certainly didn’t complain.

“I was nervous and I think people could see that in my tennis, but I really wanted to get over the line,” she said. “I watched the England match and we know that winning in an ugly way counts too. It doesn’t always have to be pretty or perfect.

“It was a very difficult match, she kept winning the ball back and it took a lot of strength to get over the line.

“There are a lot of emotions on this pitch, nothing compares to playing there and in the crucial moments I needed that support too.”

Raducanu’s campaign received a boost before the gates opened with her scheduled opponent Ekaterina Alexandrova, world number 22, withdrawing due to illness.

Zarazua had considered herself a lucky loser after her third-round defeat in qualifying, but she quickly took advantage of her late call-up.

She seemed less nervous than Raducanu at the start, even though it was only her fourth Grand Slam match and her first appearance at Wimbledon.

Aware that she might struggle to counter the Briton’s powerful game, she hit a succession of deft drop shots that sent the former US Open champion running defenceless towards the net – a weakness her future rivals will surely seek to exploit.

An exchange of breaks took the first set to a tie-break, in which Raducanu found a new level to win at zero, before closing out the next set more comfortably.

Raducanu may be 37 places below Zarazua in the world rankings, but her class ultimately made the difference, even if she admitted it was not on a par with the highlights.

She will now face powerful Belgian server Elise Mertens in the second round after her 2-6 6-2 6-4 victory over Nao Hibino.

“You have to give him credit, it’s not easy to not be in the draw in the morning and then play on Centre Court,” she added.

“I spent three days planning for Ekaterina’s arrival and it took me a little while to adjust and find my feet, but we managed to get the job done.

“I was warned a few hours in advance, she’s a completely different style of player than the one I was prepared for. It’s a good lesson to keep a cool head and stay calm because she had nothing to lose.

“I said I would be over the moon if I won my first round and I really am. I just try to cherish my wins because I have no expectations in terms of results.”

In the second round, Radacanu will be joined by fellow Briton Lily Miyazaki, who took less than an hour to double her prize of the year and claim only her second win at this level, and qualifier Sonny Kartal, who upset top seed Sorana Cristea for the victory of her career.

Miyazaki is a mathematics major from the University of Oklahoma, and it was clear from the start that she had Tamara Korpatsch’s number on the field—16.

The German, ranked 75 places higher, had no answer to the home player’s serve, with Miyazaki dropping just seven points with the ball in hand and never facing a break point.

Her 6-2 6-1 victory – which means she will leave the All England Club with a minimum of £93,000 – sees her through to a second round meeting with 14th seed Daria Kasatkina, who showed her class on grass with victory at Eastbourne last week.

“It felt so good to get my first Wimbledon win,” said Miyazaki, who also reached the second round of the US Open last year.

“It’s definitely one of the best wins of my career against a top 100 player.

“I like to play an aggressive game and put pressure on my opponents and I really managed to do that.

“I feel comfortable in these big tournaments and the crowd really motivates me. It won’t be easy, I’ve never played against Daria before but I’ve watched her play a lot. If I get the opportunity to play on a big court it would be amazing.”

Kartal, 22, has spent time on the sidelines with a heart problem following illness last year and is being supported by the Lexus-sponsored LTA Pro Scholarship Programme, the world’s premier programme for developing elite players.

And it was clear that investment – and three tough qualifying matches – were key as she came from behind to beat the furious Romanian, winning the deciding set to nil, advancing 3-6 6-3 6-0.

However, the other four Britons in action on day one all lost, with Heather Watson losing in three sets to her doubles partner Greet Minnen on the day it was confirmed she had been selected for her fourth Olympics.

Elsewhere, Charles Broom and Arthur Fery will both be considering their chances of winning their first Wimbledon matches, both going against the flow at key moments against more experienced rivals Stan Wawrinka and Daniel Altmaier. Liam Broady – who has reached the third round on his last two visits here – was beaten in four sets by Botic van de Zandschulp.

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