Emma Raducanu put her four-match loss streak to bed on Sunday as the wild card managed a win to reach the second round of the WTA Dubai event.
Night-time success at the 1000-level tournament was a welcome relief for the Brit who has not won a match in a month and has again parted ways with a coach.
Raducanu produced a -4, 6-2 win over two-time semi-finalist Maria Sakkari in a successful debut in the emirate.
“I just tried to stay focused on what was in front of me,” she said. “There was some momentum shared throughout the match.
“When I was broken in the first set, I regrouped really well to break back and was really pleased with how I performed.”
Raducanu lost a lead in the second set in a duplicate of the first but again managed to claw it back on the way to victory, finishing with an ace.
“I’m not necessarily going to give all my tactics away; it’s just a very difficult match every time we play, so I’m happy to have won on these occasions – and all big tournaments,” the winner said.
Raducanu now faces 14th seed Karolina Muchova after the Czech defeated Suzan Lamens 6-2, 6-2.
In other opening day matches at the Aviation Club, two-time champion Elina Svitolina shocked 2024 finalist Anna Kalinskaya 6-1, 6-2 in barely an hour.
Svitloina is playing the event for the 10th time to now face Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova or Clara Tauson of Denmark.
Main photo:- Emma Raducanu breaks losing streak in Dubai – by WTATennis.com
