Emma Raducano overcame serve problems to beat 26th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova to reach the second round at the Australian Open.
The 22-year-old committed 15 double faults, but she overcame an irregular match to achieve her best win at Melbourne Park, beating Russian Alexandrova, seeded 31, 7-6 (7-4) and 7-6 (7-2).
Raducanu's win sent five British players through to the second round, equaling the record here with more opportunities to come.
“My goal this year is not to be too high or too low, and to maintain a good level. Even after that,” said Raducano, who missed the Asian Tour with a sprained ligament in her foot, and then a warm-up event in Auckland with a back problem. Today, it's nice to win a match on the tour for a few months, I guess I just want to look at it, celebrate it for what it is, and then move on.”
Raducanu's enduring popularity was evident in the long queues outside Court 3 as the match began under clear Melbourne skies.
The former US Open champion's serve is a work in progress, and her first two matches saw her serve five aces and four double faults.
Since then, the balance has skewed towards the negative side, and as the tie-break approached, the player was winning less than 10 percent of the points on her second serve, while her number of double faults reached nine, including three in one match, and the score was 4-4.
Alexandrova, a big-ball striker with a relentless, passive demeanor, broke serve four times in a row, but conserving her shots was just as challenging, and Raducanu's response was in fine form.
Raducano leveled the score from 4-2 to 4-4 in the tiebreak, but only won a third point in the set when she served her second serve at a crucial moment thanks to a faltering return. A forehand return that drilled into the corner clinched the set.
Raducano appeared to hold her serve and another break of her opponent put the British No. 2 immediately ahead in the second set.
She survived three more double faults at 3-2, turned to coach Nick Cavaday for advice, was broken at 4-3 but rallied again to leave her serve in the match.
At 30-0, she was within two points, but was unable to create a match point and another double fault led to Alexandrova returning serve.
Raducano then had to save a match point to force a tiebreak, but from there she committed almost no error, with a final double fault on her first match point being her only blemish.
“Honestly, I'm not sure what I changed on my serve today. I think it had a mind of its own. I'll make sure I think about that and look at it and then get back to you,” she told reporters.
“In the first set, I was hitting a lot of good first serves. I hit a couple of aces. At the same time I was double-faulting. I was completely OK with that, okay, I'll at least do it.
“As the balls got heavier, it became more difficult. As more balls kept coming, it wasn't easy to refocus, but I knew that even if I was late, I was getting great results.”
“It was good to be able to rely on other parts of my game today which I know are very strong as well,” added Raducano, who also served nine aces.
“I'm proud that I didn't let it get to me too much and I didn't let the game get away from me.”
Raducanu then encounters his fellow teenage prodigy Amanda Anisimovawho stepped away from the game for some time due to her mental health after reaching the semi-finals of the French Open in 2019.
“I know she's a big-ball striker,” Raducano said. “I've practiced with her many times. She loves dictation. So I think it will be a big challenge for me.”
Nouri is unable to add to the British success in Melbourne
Cameron Norrie suffered a first round loss to Matteo Berrettini
Cameron Norrie was unable to add to the British's victories, as he was beaten in the opening round by former Wimbledon finalist Matteo Berrettini.
It was a tough draw for the British No.2, as Berrettini reached the semi-finals at Melbourne Park three years ago and has returned to the world rankings after injury problems.
The Italian player hit 32 aces and recovered from a set down to win 6-7 (7-4), 6-4, 6-1, 6-3.
Nouri saved a set point when the score was 5-6 in the opening match, before returning well in the tiebreak to collect six consecutive points after trailing 4-1.
But from there, the pressure on his serve saw Berrettini claim five of 13 break points over the final three sets, while Norrie was unable to convert any of his five chances in the match.
Reaching the last four here was the highlight of a difficult 2024 season for Nouri who will now fall out of the top 60.
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