Western Daily Press (Saturday)
I’ve come a long way – Emma
EMMA Raducanu’s dizzying rise up the tennis ranks continued with a victory over Zhang Shuai in the second round of the US Open on Thursday – and the 18-year-old admits she is getting used to the big stage.
It is only two months since the Kent teenager surged into public consciousness with her stunning run to the fourth round of Wimbledon, but Raducanu has already taken several more strides forward.
In her first match after Wimbledon in San Jose a month ago, she was well beaten by 49th-ranked Zhang, who has huge experience on the tour.
Raducanu had won 12 matches since that loss, though, including four at Flushing Meadows, and she outclassed Zhang in a 6-2, 6-4 win that was thoroughly one-sided until a late rally from the Chinese player.
“I’ve had five matches here in New York, so I feel very comfortable with the conditions and the courts,” said Raducanu. “I’m getting more and more used to it and each round I feel
I’m going for my shots more, and I think that was evident.
“I think I’ve come a very long way since my first qualifying match here, but also since the first tournament of this trip five weeks ago.
“Playing at the tour level for so many weeks in a row definitely builds your confidence and I’ve been fortunate enough to win quite a few matches.”
Raducanu led by a set and 4-0 before Zhang belatedly mounted a challenge, but the Briton regrouped impressively.
“That match meant so much to me on a personal level,” she said. “I wanted to win so, so bad. It didn’t really bother me that she came back because I knew that she’s a great player, she’s extremely experienced, she’s going to throw everything she had at me. So I’m just very proud of myself for overcoming that and managing to close it out at the end.”
FORMULA ONE: Lewis Hamilton’s preparations for tomorrow’s Dutch Grand Prix were dealt a blow after he broke down in practice.
Only five minutes of the second session had passed when Hamilton came to a halt in his Mercedes following an engine failure.
The majority of the 70,000 fans at Max Verstappen’s home race in Zandvoort cheered Hamilton’s stoppage at the eighth corner.
After the opening one-hour run on Friday was suspended for 37 minutes following Sebastian Vettel’s engine blow-up, Hamilton has just 20 laps under his belt ahead of Formula One’s first grand prix in Holland since 1985.
With Hamilton forced to watch the day’s concluding action from back of the Mercedes garage alongside team principal Toto Wolff, Charles Leclerc led a Ferrari one-two.
The Monegasque finished 0.154 seconds clear of Carlos Sainz with Esteban Ocon third. Verstappen ended the afternoon in fifth spot.