Emma Raducanu continued her 2024 Korea Open run by navigating a tricky match against Yuan Yue in two sets.
Raducanu arrived in Seoul wanting to start a big stretch, the Asian Swing. She hasn't had many chances to play in Asia in the past and wanted to make the most of her time here by playing lots of tennis.
She admitted that she held back earlier in the year to give herself a good chance to finish the season strongly in Asia. So far, it's been going well for her in Korea, as she won her first match at the WTA 500 event in Seoul in two sets and added yet another straight-sets win in the second round.
Her opponent was a tricky player, Yuan Yue. The Chinese player likes to play attacking tennis and can do it efficiently. However, she can be very streaky, so while her approach works most of the time, sometimes her level can be inconsistent.
There was a fair share of everything in this match because Yuan played fairly well generally but, at times, was also quite erratic. Raducanu did a great job navigating the encounter to prevent the Chinese player from gaining momentum.
The first set was crucial in that regard, as Raducanu broke her opponent's serve early but immediately lost that break. She then had more chances to break later but couldn't.
Still, the former US Open champion eventually found a breakthrough at 5-4 in the opening set to win it 6-4. However, she also scared her fans a little bit by requesting a medical timeout in the opening set, but it was likely only due to a blister on her foot, and she was able to continue playing.
After Yuan lost the opening set, her game collapsed in the second set, allowing an early break for Raducanu. Winning the opening set raised the Brit's confidence in her own play, and she was able to handle the pressure from the Chinese player even better.
An early break of serve turned into a double break lead in the second, but Raducanu lost one of those, so it was 3-1 for the Brit after four games played.
Still, Yuan and her streaky play were not enough to overcome that deficit, despite a spirited effort. The Chinese player saved seven match points in the longest game of the match, but it still wasn't enough and Raducanu was able to secure a quarter-final in Korea.
She beat Yuan 6-4, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals of the 2024 Korea Open, awaiting the winner of the match between top seed Daria Kasatkina and Hailey Baptiste, who stunned former US Open winner Sloane Stephens in the opening round.
It's an important event for Raducanu because it's a WTA 500 tournament, giving out many points. Going deep would help her improve her ranking, which is crucial for the upcoming weeks and especially next year.
Previously, she made some bizarre scheduling choices this year simply because she didn't want to play the qualifiers, and she's only in the main draw of the Korea Open because a few players pulled out.
The depleted draw and the number of points she can win make this an event in which a deep run would be welcome for the Brit. After all, with this win, Raducanu is already set to improve her ranking to return to the Top 60.
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