Annabel Croft noticed tactic Emma Raducanu used against Sloane Stephens which worked really well

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Annabel Croft spotted a tactic Emma Raducanu implemented in her victory over Sloane Stephens at the Eastbourne International.

The pair contested their first meeting against one another since the 2022 Australian Open in the sunshine on the southeast coast of England.

The Brit won a competitive first set before storming to a 6-4, 6-0 victory to win her first ever match at the tournament.

Raducanu continues to build momentum ahead of playing at Wimbledon where she will try to win her second Grand Slam title.

Annabel Croft highlights what Emma Raducanu did well against Sloane Stephens

After reaching the Nottingham Open semi-finals having not played tennis for almost two months, Raducanu was determined to return to winning ways against Stephens.

She entered the match as a slight favourite given the American’s poor run of form and failure to win a match at Eastbourne since 2015.

But she is still a dangerous player and the Bromley local needed to be on her game to win, and Croft noticed a tactic she used to help her do just that.  

“In this match Raducanu has been going after her return of serve,” Croft said while commentating for BBC Sport.

“She’s getting very good depth on the ball and is pushing Sloane Stephens behind the baseline and taking quite a bit of time away from her.”

What is Emma Raducanu’s record against Sloane Stephens?

Raducanu has now won both of her matches against the former American number one. They first played one another in the first round of the 2022 Australian Open, which the Brit won in three sets.

But the 21-year-old produced a more empathic victory on the grass in front of her home fans at Eastbourne. Raducanu struck 23 winners and committed just 13 unforced errors in an impressive victory.

“It was a very close first set and I was down quite a bit and managed to break but it was difficult because Sloane is super athletic and in the first set especially she was making a lot of balls,” she said post-match.

“It took a lot to try and hit through her and I think I managed to figure it out in the second set.” Raducanu will play Berlin Open champion Jessica Pegula in round two.