Emma Raducanu overcame a foot injury to secure passage to the Korea Open quarter-finals, with a straight-sets defeat over Chinese eight-seed Yuan Yue.
Britain’s Emma Raducanu survived another injury scare to reach her fifth quarter-final of the season at the Korea Open.
After a marathon opener against Peyton Stearns gave Raducanu her first win since July, the 21-year-old looked much improved from her opener.
Combined, Stearns and Raducanu produced 110 unforced errors in an erratic first-round match decided by two close tie-breaks, with the pair hitting eight double-faults each.
Raducanu’s 6-4, 6-3 win today however featured some more encouraging signs, especially on her serve, which delivered 11 aces and kept her nose in front when Yuan hinted at a second set comeback.
Emma Raducanu relishes ‘special’ Korean atmosphere after reaching the quarter-finals
A whopping 17-minute game at 5-3 saw Raducanu bring up and eventually waste four match points.
However, showing little sign of tension, she regrouped and smartly broke Yuan’s vulnerable serve for the sixth and decisive time in the match.
After a far more complete performance, the Brit said: “I think my key to the success today is trying to let go of any frustration that happened. Closing out the match I had a lot of match points and couldn’t convert so just staying focused and breaking in that last game.”
Raducanu outlined why she might have an advantage in Korea, suggesting that her Asian heritage has granted her a unique fire to prove herself at tournaments she’s not been part of previously.
Quick to acknowledge the buoyant and supportive atmosphere, Raducanu said: “Yeah the crowd support meant a lot. I love playing in Korea, I love Seoul, it’s one of my favourite cities.
“And I really feel that the fans here really get behind me and I find that particularly special,” she concluded.
With Raducanu dealing with the conditions in Seoul better than in her opener, she is set for a far more challenging quarter-final test.
Can Emma Raducanu win the Korea Open?
After a number of high-profile withdrawals, the event suddenly became there for the taking.
With no top ten players in the draw, Russia’s Daria Kasatkina was given the number one seeding and after defeating America’s Hailey Baptise, is the Brit’s next opponent.
Set for Friday, Raducanu will need her best game to get one over the Russian, with their two previous meetings both ending in defeat for the Brit.
Last meeting in Eastbourne this year, Raducanu managed just four games in a one-sided quarter-final.
Even if the Brit was to topple the top seed, she would face another tricky opponent in either Diana Shnaider or big-hitting Marta Kostyuk.
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