Defending U.S. Open Champ Emma Raducanu Loses in First Round

The 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu lost her chance to defend her title, as France’s Alizé Cornet upset the British star in straight sets 6–3, 6–3 in the first round on Tuesday night.

The World No. 40 has become something of a giant-killer this year, as she also beat World No. 1 Iga Świątek at Wimbledon. That win ended Świątek’s 37-match win streak.

Cornet ran away with the first set with ease, but Raducanu came storming back and took a 3–1 lead in the second. However, Cornet bounced back and cruised to win five straight games to finish off the victory.

With Tuesday’s loss, Raducanu becomes the third woman in U.S. Open history to lose her opening match in the year after winning the title. Previously, this happened to 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and ‘16 champion Angelique Kerber.

Raducanu will reportedly drop from World No. 11 to “around” No. 80 after the loss, according to José Morgado of Record Portugal. The British star commented on her projected rankings drop.

“Really sad to leave here,” Raducanu said. “It’s probably my favorite tournament. But also in a way happy because it’s a clean slate. I’m gonna drop down the rankings and climb my way back up. The target is off my back. I have another chance to claw my way back up there.”

The 19-year-old struggled with blisters on her right hand throughout the match. She even called for a medical timeout during the first set so she could have a trainer look at her hand.

This isn’t the first time this year Raducanu has dealt with blisters on her right hand—she also dealt with them during her 2022 Australian Open second-round loss.

The British star made history at last year’s U.S. Open when she became the first woman to win a Grand Slam title after reaching the tournament through qualifiers. However, she’ll need to get back to the drawing board after what was another disappointing result at one of the world’s biggest tournaments.

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