Emma Raducanu surges past Bouzkova to set up Jabeur contest in Abu Dhabi
Emma Raducanu advanced into the last 16 of the Abu Dhabi Open with an impressive 6-4, 6-1 win against the world No 26, Marie Bouzkova.
The 21-year-old recovered from a slow start to win 10 of the last 11 games and set up a meeting with the tournament’s second seed, Ons Jabeur, in the next round. It was another promising display from Raducanu after her Australian Open first-round win against Shelby Rogers last month.
Raducanu’s aggressive tactics stunned Bouzkova, a 2022 Wimbledon quarter-finalist, as she hit back from an early break to reel off four games in a row and take the first set. There was no looking back in the second set as she pressed home her advantage to seal another encouraging win.
“I think in the beginning I was just adjusting to the speed of the court. I hadn’t played on this court this year yet,” Raducanu said after the match. “It was pretty quick and also a lot more still than it had been for the week, because it’s been very windy, so it was a different tempo.
“Marie is a really tough opponent. I knew that going in I was going to have to play so many balls and I think in the beginning I was missing a few of the finishing shots, but I cleaned that up so I’m very happy about it.”
Raducanu had returned at the Auckland Open, after eight months out following wrist and ankle surgeries, and pushed Elina Svitolina to three sets. Her run in Melbourne was ended in round two where she defied a stomach bug to push China’s Wang Yafan all the way in a match lasting just short of three hours.
A first meeting with Jabeur, the twotime Wimbledon finalist ranked sixth in the world, will offer another test of Raducanu’s improved form and resilience after her 2023 season was derailed by injuries.