Emma Raducanu revealed one in every of her priorities was to remain “really focused” after impressively beating Maria Sakkari 6-4 6-2 in her her first-round match on the Dubai Obligation Free Tennis Championships.
After shedding to Marketa Vondrousova within the Doha first spherical, the British tennis participant fell to a four-match shedding streak.
However late final week, she discovered that her Center East swing nonetheless wasn’t over after the Dubai organizers named her a primary draw wildcard recipient.
And Raducanu made certain she would not waste as she dismantled former world No. 3 Sakkari to get again within the winner’s column and likewise arrange a second-round assembly towards No. 14 seed Karolina Muchova.
In every of the 2 units, the Briton dropped her serve as soon as.
However on the opposite facet, she additionally claimed two breaks within the first set and three extra breaks within the second set.
Emma Raducanu© DDF Tennis Championships/Instagram – Truthful Use
Raducanu: Actually happy with my play, Sakkari is a high participant
“I just tried to stay really focused on the point in front of me,” the world No. 61 mentioned in a court-side interview.
“There were some momentum shifts throughout the match and when I got broken twice early in the sets I just regrouped really well and I managed to break back [immediately] both times.
“I was really pleased with how I fought and competed against Maria, she’s a top player, been as high as three in the world. I’m just really proud of my performance.”
Raducanu, who additionally beat Sakkari throughout final 12 months’s Wimbledon, now has a 3-0 head-to-head file towards the Greek.
“I feel in a method we play fairly comparable, she’s actually athletic. I’m not essentially going to offer all my techniques away,” the 22-year-old mentioned when addressing their head-to-head.
Subsequent up for Raducanu will probably be one other robust assembly Muchova, who ousted Suzan Lamens 6-2 6-2 in her Dubai opener.
When the 2021 US Open champion and the 2023 French Open finalist meet in Dubai, it will likely be the primary conflict between the 2.
