Emma Raducanu backed by Mark Petchey despite lopsided loss to Jelena Ostapenko at Stuttgart Open
Emma Raducanu suffered a lopsided first-round loss to Jelena Ostapenko at the 2023 Stuttgart Open on Tuesday, April 18.
The Brit could not hold her ground against Ostapenko, who dominated the game from the get-go with her high-quality strikes. Raducanu's shots, on the other hand, had little penetration, and she managed to win only three games in the match.
Ostapenko's on-court prowess was on full display as she saved the lone break point while going a perfect five-for-five in break-point conversions. With an 80% win rate on her first serve, Ostapenko gave little room to the former US champion, closing the match 6-2, 6-1 in 59 minutes.
Despite the one-sided outcome, former player and tennis commentator Mark Petchey took to Twitter in support of Raducanu. He suggested that Ostapenko's performance was "too good" on the day and that most players would have suffered the same fate against her.
Petchey also highlighted that the indoor clay court was a unique one where not many players stood a chance against the seasoned former French Open champion.
"On these courts which are unique, I doubt too many players beat Ostepenko today. That was a ridiculously good performance. Emma did nothing wrong. Just too good from the other," he wrote.
@TheTennisTalker On these courts which are unique, I doubt too many players beat Ostepenko today. That was a ridiculously good performance. Emma did nothing wrong. Just too good from the other.
Ostapenko will next square off against World No. 4 Ons Jabeur in the second round of the tournament.
Emma Raducanu to drop further down the rankings list after R1 loss at Stuttgart Open 2023
Emma Raducanu is likely to drop 15 places in the rankings after her first-round loss at the 2023 Stuttgart Open, where she reached the quarterfinals last year.
The Brit's season has been plagued with injuries. She opened her 2023 season with the ASB Classic, where she conceded her Round-of-16 match due to an ankle injury. She then made a second-round exit at the Australian Open and took some time off to recuperate from a wrist injury.
Raducanu took to the courts again at the Sunshine Double events. She made it to the Round of 16 at Indian Wells but couldn't find her form at the Miami Open, where she fell to Bianca Andreescu in the first round.
In a post-match interview, the 20-year-old spoke about her struggles with injuries.
"I think that I'm doing the right things day to day, which brings me confidence," she said. "I feel like this year has been difficult in the sense that I have been managing a few existing injuries. Yeah, that has been annoying and frustrating because I've been working as best as I can."
Emma Raducanu is likely to hold the No. 83 spot on Monday, which will make her upcoming Madrid Open performance crucial in her quest to stay in the top 100.