Emma Raducanu was looking to advance to the second round of the Australian Open for the fourth consecutive year.
The British WTA star had a lot of questions to answer ahead of her first round match, after a tough few weeks.
Raducanu withdrew from the ASB Classic in New Zealand, after injuring her back, as her preparations for the Australian Open took a huge detour.
Fit for the Australian Open, Raducanu took on 26th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova in the first round.
Despite Raducanu hitting 15 double faults, she advanced to the second round with a 7-6, 7-6 win over her Russian opponent.
Following the match, a British tennis legend took the time to give his thoughts on Raducanu’s serving struggles.
Tim Henman thinks Emma Raducanu’s ‘bad back’ caused problems for her serve at the Australian Open
Speaking to Eurosport after Raducanu’s first-round win in Melbourne, former Wimbledon semi-finalist Tim Henman spoke about the Brit’s double-fault issues.
“She had to pull out of Auckland because of that back spasm and you kind of wonder if you have a bad back, the last thing you really want to be doing is serving so she might not have served so much coming into the event,” he said.
“We have talked about how her service motion has changed a bit, it is a little bit longer.
“But at the end of the day if you can serve 15 double faults and still end up winning, it probably means the other areas of your game are working pretty well and against a seeded opponent she will just be pleased to get that win under her belt.”
Raducanu was one of just four WTA players to hit over ten double faults during her opening-round match.
| Name | Double Faults | Result | Sets |
| Emma Raducanu | 15 | Winner | Two |
| Hailey Baptiste | 14 | Loser | Three |
| Marta Kostyuk | 11 | Winner | Three |
| Bernarda | 11 | Loser | Two |
Henman went on to say how pleased he was to see the 2021 US Open champion back in action.
“She always fights but first and foremost it was great to see her on the match court,” he said.
“She hasn’t played a massive amount of tennis and you are thinking she needs to get matches under her belt.”
Mats Wilander thinks Emma Raducanu can become one of the ‘best players’ in the world
It wasn’t just Henman who was full of praise for Raducanu after the match, as seven-time Slam winner Mats Wilander gave his thoughts on the 22-year-old.
“Every time I see her, there is no question in my mind that she can become one of the best players in the world if she stays healthy long enough,” he said.
Wilander may think that Raducanu can be one of the best, but how has she fared so far in her career, when she’s played the very best of the WTA Tour?
| WTA Rank | Name | Head-to-head v Emma Raducanu |
| 1 | Aryna Sabalenka | 1-0 |
| 2 | Iga Swiatek | 3-0 |
| 3 | Coco Gauff | 1-0 |
| 4 | Jasmine Paolini | 0-0 |
| 5 | Qinwen Zheng | 0-0 |
| 6 | Jessica Pegula | 1-1 |
| 7 | Elena Rybakina | 1-0 |
| 8 | Emma Navarro | 0-0 |
| 9 | Barbora Krejcikova | 0-0 |
| 10 | Daria Kasatkina | 3-0 |
The British star has won just one match against a member of the current WTA top ten.
Raducanu beat Jessica Pegula at Eastbourne last year, securing her first career top-ten win.
The world number 61 will no doubt hope to pick up some more big wins, as she looks to become one of the best players in women’s tennis.
Raducanu will continue her assault on a second Grand Slam title on Thursday, January 16, when she comes up against America’s Amanda Anisimova.
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