Breaking news’:Today Emma Raducanu sign $230 million contract extension leaving…
Getting through first rounds are always difficult, first rounds are about getting through them, trying to find a way to work your way into a tournament. I’m very proud of that, I think I played some pretty good tennis too. I think I lost my focus a bit in the second, and I am happy to have recovered the break back in the third set. It’s not easy playing at 11.30. I got here Thursday night so I’m still jet-lagged. I think I am just most proud of my mentality and character today. Emma Raducanu
Raducanu saved 5 break points late in the third set to snuff out Mertens’ bid for a come-back, having earlier confessed that she had mixed feelings about missing out on the Olympics in Paris.
“Of course there are elements of FOMO — missing out,” the 21-year-old Brit said at a pre-tournament news conference on Saturday, a day after she watched the Games’ Opening Ceremony. “A part of you, obviously, wants to be there representing your country.”
Several top players opted out of competing at Paris 2024 for a variety of different reasons, some wanting to prepare for the hard courts and humidity of the US Open, while others are in pursuit of the ranking points that tour events offer but the Olympics do not.
Above all, many wanted to protect their health by maintaining the routines of a traditional tennis schedule.
Players with significant injury histories were especially reluctant to undertake a transition back to the clay courts of Paris in between the grass and hard court seasons.
“The change of surface isn’t the best thing for me right now,” said Raducanu, who has battled injuries since winning the US Open in 2021. “When I think big picture, long term, it’s the right call.”
The 55th edition of the DC Open is hosting Top 20 players, and former Grand Slam champions in a field of 28 headed by Aryna Sabalenka, the World No 4 who is returning from an injury break, and also includes No 16 Ons Jabeur, No 20 Victoria Azarenka, 2020 Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin and 2017 US Open champion Sloane Stephens.
“We’ll make it our small Olympics here,” Jabeur said. “This tournament is pretty strong. So many top athletes are here. It’s going to be a very tough draw.”
Jabeur, a trailblazing icon in her native Tunisia, decided to forgo the Olympics because of a persistent knee issue that makes surface changes especially arduous.
“There are so many players that had different injuries, and they chose not to risk [going to the Olympics] because of that,” the 29-year-old said. “You’re playing clay, playing a big event like the Olympics, I think you need to be ready and perform at your best. I’m not very young anymore.”
Likewise, former World No 2 Paula Badosa was wary of aggravating a back injury that caused her to miss 3 of the 4 majors last year.
“If I keep changing from hard to clay and grass, at the end, I can struggle,” said Badosa, who is making her debut appearance at the DC Open. “[My back] can get inflamed more easily. Sometimes, mentally, you’re a little bit scared of that. I want to avoid that feeling. When I have one surface for weeks, I think my body adapts better. I thi
Emma Raducanu sign $230 million contracts
extension leaving…
