Emma Raducanu recently gave a candid assessment of her first-round win at the 2024 Wimbledon championships, comparing it to England's win over Slovakia at the EURO.
Raducanu was dealt a late change of tactics after her first-round opponent, Ekaterina Alexandrova, withdrew from the tournament due to illness just hours before the match.
Therefore, lucky loser Renata Zarazua of Mexico was brought in to replace the Russian. The World No. 98, known for her unorthodox brand of tennis, posed quite a challenge for Raducanu despite her lack of match wins on grass in the main draw of Tour-level tournaments.
After a tight opening set, which was settled by the Brit in a tie-break after an hour, things got a little bit easier in the second set. The former US Open champion secured the break she needed midway through the set and sealed the match on her second match point.
During her post-match interview, Raducanu, who had been playing at Wimbledon for the first time since 2022, believed the match was "incredibly difficult" and that she had to resort to "winning ugly," much like what England did at the European Championships.
The Three Lions were somewhat uninspiring during their round of 16 clash against Slovakia until they scored deep in injury time to level and then clinched the winner in extra time to advance into the quarterfinal.
"I was for sure nervous. I think everyone could see that in my tennis a little bit. But at the end of the day, you have to just do what it takes to get over the line and honestly watching the football last night, it was like winning ugly like it like it all counts."
Raducanu will next face the experienced Elise Mertens in the second round. The Belgian defeated Nao Hibino in her opening match in three sets. It will be their first-ever meeting on Tour.
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