NEW YORK — Emma Raducanu’s US Open defence got here to an finish within the first spherical as she misplaced to Alize Cornet in straight units on Tuesday.
Raducanu surprised the sporting world final yr when she went from qualifier to winner of the ladies’s singles in an unbelievable fortnight in New York. However she got here unstuck in opposition to Cornet, who was enjoying in her 63rd straight Grand Slam. Cornet defeated Raducanu 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour, 42 minutes.
“I am clearly upset to lose first spherical,” Raducanu stated. “Yeah, I imply, credit score to Alize, she performed fairly effectively. I imply [it is] clearly actually disappointing, [I’m] actually unhappy to depart right here. It is in all probability my favourite event.
“But in addition, I imply, in a approach [I’m] glad as a result of it is a clear slate. I’ll drop down the rankings. Climb my approach again up.”
It was a match wherein each gamers struggled to carry serve in blustery situations in Louis Armstrong Stadium, and there have been 5 breaks of serve within the first set.
“I feel it was fairly windy,” Raducanu stated. “It was blowing, like, from back-to-front. It was fairly tough for me particularly to seek out my ball toss. I feel I used to be hitting numerous serves lengthy. I simply struggled to adapt to it actually.
“And, I imply, it is one thing that each gamers need to sort of cope with. She simply handled it higher than me at this time.”
Raducanu known as a medical timeout on the finish of the primary set for therapy on her proper hand, having suffered from blisters there throughout her apply session on Friday.
“I received a brand new one,” Raducanu stated. “However, like, , you tape it up and transfer on it. It is a blister. Not a lot you are able to do about it.”
Cornet and Raducanu exchanged breaks initially of the second set however the important thing spell got here within the seventh sport, when Cornet broke Raducanu’s serve to go up 4-3. She held within the eighth and wanted only one match level to interrupt Raducanu once more and progress to the second spherical.
The victory is one other spotlight in Cornet’s yr, after she reached the quarterfinals of the Australian Open and defeated world No.1 Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon.
For Raducanu, the defeat will see her fall within the WTA rankings as she loses 2030 factors she received right here final yr. That is her first full yr on the WTA Tour. She misplaced within the second spherical on the Australian Open, Roland Garros and Wimbledon forward of this first-round exit at Flushing Meadows.
“This one clearly hurts a bit as a result of it is my favourite event and clearly like loads of feelings prior to now yr,” she stated.
“Yeah, I imply, I am proud for placing myself on the market each match, day-after-day. Like I do know I am pushing myself to be the perfect I can.”
She added: “I imply, in a approach the goal shall be off my again barely. Yeah, I simply have one other probability to claw my approach again up there.”
Raducanu is uncertain of what her subsequent steps shall be and which tournaments she’ll play in for the remainder of the yr. She was additionally noncommittal on whether or not she’ll proceed working with coach Dmitry Tursunov, who’s been together with her for the previous six weeks.
She feels her most important focus of enchancment is to get a greater consistency over the course of subsequent yr.
“If I have a look at how a lot tennis I performed this yr, or coaching I’ve performed, it is very, very minimal,” she stated.
“We, like, really counted the times.
“From, like, Rome to a bit after Wimbledon, I solely performed tennis for, like, 14 days in two months and a half or one thing. It was fairly wild.
“I feel a very powerful factor for me is simply consistency of those weeks, of coaching, of competing. You lose a match, you are on the apply courtroom like two days later or one thing. It is simply not having these large chunks of gaps.”
