A wounded Emma Raducanu has crashed out of the Australian Open in the second round after Danka Kovinic battled to a tense three-set victory. Raducanu went into the match relaxed and confident after overcoming the stern test of former US Open champion Sloane Stephens in the first round.
But she was hampered by blisters on her right hand which flared up during the first set – an injury which forced her to adapt her game admirably, even if it was not quite enough to get the win over the line.
Raducanu therefore failed to make the third round, falling short of the lofty standards she exhibited at last year’s Wimbledon and US Open tournaments.
It seemed to be a repeat of the Stephens match up when Raducanu raced into a 3-0 lead in the opening set, but she was not to know that complications were on the horizon.
Blisters on her right hand were visibly causing her to bother, and despite a medical timeout to get the hand patched up, Kovinic pounced on the opportunity to take the opening set 6-4.
Against all the odds, Raducanu made the most of backhand opportunities and extracted every last drop out of her forehand slice to take the match to a deciding set.
Despite keeping it close to begin with, Kovinic eventually pounced on the deflated youngster to prevail 6-4 4-6 6-3.
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