Emma Raducanu blasted the officials following her opening round win at the Nottingham Open.
The 21-year-old played her first match since April when she took on Japan’s Ena Shibahara for a spot in the next round.
The 2021 US Open champion’s 6-1, 6-4 win marked her first win on a grass court in 713 days.
But during the contest, Raducanu was distracted by some line calls she did not agree with and made her feelings about them very clear.
What did Emma Raducanu say about the line calling at the Nottingham Open?
The former British number one was cruising at 6-1, 5-1, but Shibahara gained one of breaks back and held serve to force Raducanu to serve for the match again at 5-3.
During the game she disputed a line call and lost her serve, before breaking her opponent to close out the match.
Hawkeye technology is not in operation at the Nottingham Open, meaning they cannot call for a challenge to review a call should they wish to do so.
Some calls went against the Bromley local, which she felt left her playing what she described as “two v one”. This comes after Hariett Dart complained about the officiating durg her loss to Katie Boulter.
“I think a lot of the time they go both ways, today I felt they were all against me but it just makes me feel better that I managed to beat her and the umpire as well,” Raducanu told reporters. “It is difficult when there is no challenge but it is something everyone has to deal with.
“You can be fortunate in some ways, maybe it was just trying to make the match more competitive. It was 6-1 and 5-1 and all of a sudden first point serving at 5-3 it’s a really bad line call.
“It’s something I had to deal with and overcome. I am very pleased with the attitude I came out with from the get-go and also having to deal with the adversity.”
Who does Emma Raducanu play next?
Raducanu, who is playing her first grass court tournament since Wimbledon in 2022, will face Ukraine’s Daria Snigur on Thursday.
She claimed an upset victory over her compatriot Marta Kostuyk with a 6-3, 6-3, victory. Raducanu credited Shibahara for a spirited performance and is looking ahead too her next contest.
“But I think my intentions were great from the start of the match, and I played a really good match,” the former World number 10 said.
“All credit to Ena, she’s making it very tricky on the grass courts with the serve-and-volley and it’s very tough to find a way past, but I’m pleased with how I dealt with the circumstances today.”
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