Raducanu's commanding win over Mertens propels her to Wimbledon's third-round

WTA
Wednesday, 03 July 2024 at 19:26
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Emma Raducanu (No. 135) easily defeats Elise Mertens (No. 33), advances to Wimbledon third round. The former US Open champion had a dominant start in the match, while Mertens failed to threaten her opponent's service, compounded by constant unforced errors that cost her the match.
The current British No. 6 secures a ranking rise and is now No. 106 in the live rankings. Her next challenge will be against the winner of the match between Arantxa Rus (No. 56) and the 9th seed Maria Sakkari. A win would guarantee her re-entry into the top 100 after 14 months.

Emma Raducanu cruises past Elise Mertens

Raducanu enters to great local support on Court 1 at SW19. Right from the start, Raducanu excelled in her service, winning points quickly with a 77% first serve rate, and winning 67% of them. The Brit swiftly took the lead with consecutive breaks in the second and fourth games, along with effective serving that put her 5-0 up in under 30 minutes.
Although Mertens managed to hold her serve only once, Raducanu closed out the set saving a break point against her, taking the lead 6-1. The players were tied at 7 winners each, while Raducanu capitalized on Mertens' 14 unforced errors in just 7 games, compared to Raducanu's 8. In the second set, Raducanu appeared poised to quickly take control again. In the opening game, Mertens had to save 4 break points against her serve.
Unfortunately for the Belgian, she couldn't find an answer to Raducanu's strong serving and struggled to threaten her opponent's serve. The break came in the third game in favor of the former Grand Slam champion, who seized her seventh set opportunity to go up 3-1 with her serve.
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The nightmare continued for Mertens as she conceded her serve for the second consecutive time, leaving her opponent in a commanding position. Raducanu sealed the victory 6-1, 6-2 and will return to the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time since her 2021 US Open title, achieving a 6-2 (75%) record in three appearances at SW19. Her next opponent will be the winner of the Rus – Sakkari match.

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