Raducanu regrets lack of prep after US she should have gotten more matches under her belt ahead of the US Open after the former champion lost 6-1 3-6 6-4 in the first round to American Sofia Kenin on Tuesday.
Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open winner, put on an aggressive display with six aces and 45 winners to set up a meeting with compatriot Jessica Pegula in the next round.
Britain’s Raducanu has struggled to recapture the magic of her fairytale run through New York three years ago when she became the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam.
She skipped key tune-up events in Toronto and Cincinnati, taking a different approach in her buildup to the year’s final major, but struggled to find her feet as Kenin ripped through the opening set.
“I would have probably preferred to play a little bit more,” Raducanu said. “When I have a lot of matches, just like every player, you feel really good, you feel like everything’s automatic. So yeah, I think I can learn from it.”
Raducanu, who raised hopes of a renaissance when she reached the fourth round at Wimbledon this year, upped her level in the second set and got the critical break in the fifth game.
Emma Raducanu lost to Sofia Kenin in the US Open first round. Robert Prange/Getty Images
She broke Kenin again with a forehand winner to close out the set but then ran out of steam, dropping serve with a double fault in the fifth game of the decider before Kenin went on to seal victory with a hold to love i
n the final game.
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