Emma Raducanu is playing really solid tennis at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, and her run continued when she bested Maria Sakkari in two sets.
Before the match, the Brit said she was the underdog against Sakkari, as the Greek is ranked in the Top 10 on the WTA Tour. Still, according to many factors, Raducanu was the favorite in this match, and she showed why once they stepped onto the Centre Court.
Despite being a decent player, the Greek hasn't really impressed anybody with her performances this year, especially not on grass in recent weeks. It's arguably her weakest surface, despite having good results on it in the past, while Raducanu might just be one of the better players on grass on the Tour.
It's mostly because she grew up on the surface, which is a huge bonus, as other players don't get the chance to play on grass that often. That familiarity was evident in this match as the home crowd hero simply looked more comfortable and played better.
She took an early break, which was ideal for her as it put a lot of pressure on Sakkari while giving Raducanu a chance to calm down a little bit. From there, it was a dominant first-set performance, as Raducanu took the opening set 6-2.
The Brit did a wonderful job of staying in most rallies as Sakkari really tried to outhit Raducanu, but 17 unforced errors in 8 games was not a good mark. Even in the second set, Sakkari didn't change much in her approach.
She still tried to finish off most points but made many unforced errors. She stabilized a bit in the second part of the second set but still wasn't able to create too much pressure.
The final score was 6-2, 6-3 for Raducanu, who moved on to the second week for the second time in her career at Wimbledon.
Emma Raducanu vs Maria Sakkari Match Stats:
| Emma Raducanu | 6-2, 6-3 | Maria Sakkari |
| 3 | Aces | 2 |
| 3 | Double Faults | 6 |
| 76% | First Serve % | 58% |
| 71% (32/45) | Points Won After First Serve % | 69% (25/36) |
| 50% (7/14) | Points Won After Second Serve % | 27% (7/26) |
| 44% (4/9) | Break Point Conversion | 0% (0/7) |
| 15 | Winners | 20 |
| 13 | Unforced Errors | 31 |
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