Former U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu overcame wind and rain in a match that stretched over almost four hours to beat Linda Fruhvirtova 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 Tuesday, January 3, 2023, in her first singles match of 2023 at the ASB Classic.
The match was twice interrupted by rain and the second delay in the deciding set forced the players from the court for almost an hour.
Raducanu returned to take charge by immediately breaking the 17-year-old Fruhvirtova for a 2-0 lead and going on to serve for the match at 5-0.
Fruhvirtova broke back for 5-1, then saved four match points on serve in a tenacious attempt to keep the contest alive.
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Raducanu fell behind 0-30 in her next service game but recovered with a series of big serves and finally secured the win in just under 2 1-2 hours of court time, not counting delays.
“I think it’s like four hours later. Honestly, I don’t know what time it is anymore,” Raducanu said.
“What a battle. Linda is such a great young player and it was a different dynamic for me because usually, I’m the younger one. Going into this match she is and she’s going to be up there for sure, she already is.”
Raducanu, who is 20, was playing her first competitive match in 2 1-2 months and had to fight hard against the Czech teenager, who won a tight first set in 53 minutes.
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