Sports
The British sensation, who shot to popularity in 2021 with an unexpected victory at Flushing Meadows, lost to Sofia Kenin on Tuesday, 6-1 3-6 6-4.
When asked how the defeat affected her, Raducanu had to hold back the tears.
The 21-year-old added, “Yeah, I feel down, like I feel sad,” following a little silence.
“This is a tournament I really want to do well in.”
She went on, “For the remainder of the season, I’m simply going to go back to the drawing board, train, and evaluate where I went wrong.
“Obviously, the slams are over for this year, but it’s not actually that long until Australia comes around again.”
Raducanu’s incredible triumph over Leylah Fernandez in the 2021 final is the only match she has lost at the US Open.
During her 2022 defence, she was ousted in the first round and had an injury that prevented her from competing in the 2023 tournament.
Due to a mix of bad form and injury, Raducanu has had a terrible three years, even though he saw a brief comeback at Wimbledon earlier this year.
Several people expressed doubts about the tennis player’s preparations for the US Open, given that she had only participated in one tournament since Wimbledon and had skipped the Olympics.
Raducanu’s first competitive match in a span of twenty-five days ended in defeat against former Australian Open champion Kenin.
“I would have preferred to probably play a little bit more before coming into the US Open,” she said in an admission.
Like any player, I know that after a string of successful matches, you feel great and like everything goes without a hitch.
In the Olympic village, Novak Djokovic celebrates his gold medal in a distinctive way by dancing Serbian.
I’m able to grow from it. And, you know, take a little different approach to scheduling.
“I wasn’t the only one. I’m not really able to modify what happened; it was more of a group call.”
Better news for fellow Britishman Dan Evans, who prevailed against 23rd seed Karen Khachanov in the longest-ever US Open match.
In the decisive set, Evans trailed 4-0 (15-40) but rallied to win 6-7 7-6 7-6 4-6 6-4 in five hours and thirty-five minutes.
