Emma Raducanu’s performance suffered at the Madrid Open as she was eliminated from the competition following a first-round straight-sets loss to Maria Lourdes Carle, who currently ranked 82nd in the world.
Raducanu entered the match with a winning record, having emerged victorious from the Billie Jean King Cup for Great Britain and the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart. However, during the build-up to Madrid, the British player expressed her fatigue, and she lost to Carle with a record of 6-2 6-2 on Pista Arantxa Sanchez at the first hurdle.
The athlete stated after her defeat: “I’m going to recharge a bit…From the performance today it was very clear that mentally and emotionally, I was exhausted. It’s a shame, but I guess the sport is just pretty brutal.”
Raducanu’s performance despite injury
With her left knee strapped up, the 2021 US Open champion was regarded as a heavily favored competitor against qualifier Carle. However, the 21-year-old, who had a difficult 2023 playing season due to injuries, put on an inconsistent performance, winning just 13/26 first serve points and 2/14 on her second serve.
Moreover, after defeating Taylah Preston and Astra Sharma, Carle advanced to her second-ever WTA 1000 main draw. She won her first WTA main-draw match since 2022 and her second-ever at a clay-court WTA event by breaking Raducanu’s serve six times.
Cover Photo: IG
Source: Sky Sports
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