The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Raducanu pushed all the way by qualifier in Paris debut
Emma Raducanu narrowly avoided a taste of her own medicine after coming from a set down to see off 17-year-old debutant Linda Noskova at the French Open.
In what could have been a story straight from the Raducanu playbook at Flushing Meadows, a teenage qualifier playing her first professional grand slam match was a set and a break up and on the verge of knocking out the reigning US Open champion.
It was the first time the British number one had played a Tour-level match against a player younger than her, but the inexperienced Noskova played with no fear, just as her illustrious opponent had done eight months earlier in her improbable run to glory in New York.
However, 12th seed Raducanu rallied admirably to level the match and then raced away with the decider as Noskova flagged, eventually sealing a 6-7 (4-7) 7-5 6-1 victory.
Raducanu had insisted she was fit to compete despite pulling out of the Italian Open with a back injury earlier this month, the latest in a series of niggles which have afflicted her since the US Open.
Nevertheless, things seemed to be going to plan when the 19-year-old – also making her senior debut on the Paris clay – eased into a 2-0 lead with a break and a comfortable hold.
But Noskova knows her way around the red dirt – the Czech is the reigning girls’ champion here – and the youngest player to qualify for Roland Garros in 13 years saved three break points before breaking back from 40-0 down.
Raducanu was irked by the light rain which forced the players off briefly while the lines were dried, and breaks were shared again before the opening set went to a tie-break which turned the underdog’s way thanks to a superb forehand down the line.
A see-saw second set was settled when Raducanu converted a fourth set point on the Noskova serve with a pinpoint drop shot to take the match into a decider.
A backhand winner on a short second serve gave Raducanu the initiative and with Noskova’s head dropping, she served out for a hard-fought maiden main-draw victory.
Raducanu said: “I mean it was an absolute battle. I have to say Linda is playing some amazing tennis and she really came out there firing.
“As soon as I dropped my ball speed, she was all over me and killing me from the end of the first set.
“So, it was definitely really challenging in the second set to hold on and keep holding my serve and break back a couple of times.
“I am really proud of the way I fought but all props to Linda as she played an amazing match.”
Raducanu will play Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus in round two.
Meanwhile, Harriet Dart narrowly avoided a dreaded double-bagel for the second time at a grand slam, losing 6-0 6-2 to Italy’s Martina Trevisan.
The 25-year-old from London failed to win a game in a first-round defeat by Maria Sharapova at the Australian Open in 2019.
Dart must have feared a repeat at 6-0 3-0 down, but she at least managed to get a couple of games on the board.
Dart can console herself with almost £53,000 in prize money for her hour and 25 minutes’ work.
Heather Watson fared little better, going down in straight sets to Elsa Jacquemot of France.
The 30-year-old from Guernsey was a break up in the second set but still slipped to a 6-3 6-3 defeat.
British No 1 Cameron Norrie maintained his fine recent form by making short work of wildcard Manuel Guinard.
Norrie, fresh from winning his first title on clay in Lyon at the weekend, took a tight first set and then cruised to a 7-5 6-2 6-0 first-round victory.
The 26-year-old, ranked 11 in the world, said: “It was a battle in the first set and I just had to hang in there.
“It’s so nice to get my first win here this year. I have to be really patient on the clay.
“When I’m playing really well I can love it and then when I’m not I have moments where I don’t like it so much. It feels really good to win.”
Norrie’s victory set up a second-round meeting with Australian qualifier Jason Kubler.
Dan Evans finally won a match at Roland Garros at the fifth time of asking.
The British No 2, a firstround loser in each of his four previous main draw appearances, beat Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo 7-6 (7-3) 6-4 6-4.
Rafael Nadal shrugged off his ongoing battle with injury after beginning his bid for a 14th Roland Garros title with a clinical straight-sets victory.
The Spaniard, seeded five this year, swept aside Australia’s Jordan Thompson 6-2 6-2 6-2 despite a recurring foot problem which scuppered his bid for a first title on clay this season at the Italian Open earlier this month.
Defending champion Novak Djokovic dropped just four games on his way into the second round.
The Serbian beat Japan’s Yoshihito Nishioka 6-3 6-1 6-0 in a one-sided first night match of the tournament.