Emma Raducanu gets revenge in Indian Wells win vs Danka Kovinic

Emma Raducanu avenged her 2022 Australian Open defeat to Danka Kovinic by beating the Montenegrin 6-2, 6-3 at Indian Wells on Thursday night. The Briton had gone into the match with fresh fears over an old wrist injury but won in straight sets after an hour and 22 minutes for just her third victory of the year.

Ahead of the match, the British No 1 – who practiced with strapping on both wrists on Wednesday – admitted an old problem had “started to flare back up”. She added: “I’m trying to be as cautious as possible. I’m going to do everything I can to be there tomorrow.

“I think we always play through pain and it’s just a matter of how much can you take – I’m looking forward to hopefully being out there tomorrow.” That came after a bout of tonsillitis had also forced her to pull out of the ATX Open in Texas.

But her wrist problem did not hold her back as she got her own back on Kovinic inside the 16,000-seater Stadium 1 arena. The 20-year-old was playing for the first time on the WTA Tour in almost two months after being put out of this year’s Aus Open by Coco Gauff in Melbourne.

Yet there were few signs of rust as the 20-year-old won in straight sets. Raducanu battled back from being broken straight away as she won six straight games on her way to taking the first set in style.

And the Briton produced a carbon copy response to being broken early in the second set in the Californian desert. She went from 2-0 down to 4-2 up and needed just one of her three match points to put Kovinic away. That means she gets revenge for her loss in Australia to the same opponent just over 12 months ago, when she was beaten 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.

Raducanu reacted: “It was a good match. Danka is an extremely difficult opponent. I was expecting a battle and I am just glad to get through. I am happy I stuck in. Being a break down is obviously difficult, but mentally I just took it one point at a time.”

As a result of beating Kovinic, the world No 77 – the winner of the 2021 US Open – has progressed to the second round where she is set to face 20th seed Magda Linette. Raducanu’s draw means she could face world No 1 Iga Swiatek in round four.

Elsewhere at Indian Wells on Thursday, Raducanu’s fellow Briton Jack Draper won his opening match in just 55 minutes. He defeated Leandro Riedi of Switzerland 6-1, 6-1.

And that sets up an all-English second-round encounter between himself and British No 2 Dan Evans. Evans is the 24th seed and received a bye through to the second round.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka and Diego Schwartzman were also among the winners on day two of the tournament on the men’s side. In the women’s, Britain’s Katie Swan was eliminated on Wednesday after Katie Boulter and Jodie Anna Burrage went out in the qualifiers.