Melbourne: US Open champion Emma Raducanu was knocked out of the Australian Open after she lost to Danka Kovinic in the second round, here on Thursday. It
Melbourne: US Open champion Emma Raducanu was knocked out of the Australian Open after she lost to Danka Kovinic in the second round, here on Thursday. It was a painful defeat for Britain’s Raducanu, who suffered from blisters on her racquet hand throughout, making for a gripping and unusual contest packed with twists, turns and tactical adjustments and eventually fell to a 6-4 4-6 6-3 defeat on Margaret Court Arena. This is the first time that the 19-year-old has lost a completed match at a Grand Slam, with her only previous defeat coming when she pulled out with breathing difficulties against Ajla Tomljanovic in the fourth round of Wimbledon. On the other hand, Kovinic became the first player from Montenegro to make it to the third round of a Grand Slam. She will now face Simona Halep, who dropped just two games against Beatriz Haddad Maia. Raducanu leapt to a quick 3-0 double-break lead thanks to an error-strewn start from Kovinic, but it was evident that the Briton’s blisters were bothering her as early as the second changeover, when she took a medical time-out to get her racquet hand taped.
