Emma Raducanu has made a winning return to action after not playing since Miami where she reached the Quarter-FInals, she saw off Suzan Lamens in two hard fought sets at the Madrid Open on Wednesday afternoon.
Raducanu sealed it in just under two hours 7-6, 6-4. She now faces Marta Kostyuk in the second round who is in the seed in her section. Raducanu perhaps could be a sleeper on clay given her form last year.
The former US Open champion slightly disappointed by deciding to not play most of the clay court season after showing promise at the Billie Jean King Cup on the surface. But she only played Stuttgart then decided to rest up for the grass.
Raducanu this time around doesn't need wildcards to get into either qualifying or the main draw so is able to target these events. She has had a few weeks of intensive training after Miami instead of playing Rouen which was pencilled in with Mark Petchey also by her side when his commitments allow.
Raducanu led at points in the opening set going 4-3 and 5-4 up on Lamens but staved off break points in the latter and couldn't find the solution herself. She was taken all the way to a tie-break but she surged from 3-2 down to only give her opponent one more point.
In the second set Lamens led 3-2 but in a game she should've won Raducanu broke her serve for 4-3 only to lose it straight away but the Brit staved off potentially another set by decidingly breaking one more time before sealing the win.
Other victors today include Belinda Bencic who thrashed Zeynep Sonmez 6-0, 6-2. Maria Sakkari also was victorious while Petra Kvitova's return to Madrid was a bit of a horror show as she was well beaten 6-4, 6-0 by Katie Volynets.
Match Statistics Lamens vs. Raducanu
| Lamens | VS | Raducanu |
|---|---|---|
| Service | ||
| 2 | Aces | 3 |
| 7 | Double Faults | 1 |
| 64% (51/80) | 1st Service Percentage | 62% (46/74) |
| 67% (34/51) | 1st Service Points Won | 61% (28/46) |
| 38% (11/29) | 2nd Service Points Won | 64% (18/28) |
| 43% (3/7) | Break Points Saved | 63% (5/8) |
| 64% (7/11) | Service Games | 73% (8/11) |
| Return | ||
| 39% (18/46) | 1st Return Points Won | 33% (17/51) |
| 36% (10/28) | 2nd Return Points Won | 62% (18/29) |
| - | Break Points Saved | - |
| Other | ||
| 1h 59m | Match Duration | 1h 59m |
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Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
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