Emma Raducanu’s wait for a top-ten win continues after she was squashed in straight sets by Ons Jabeur, the second seed in Abu Dhabi.
Raducanu’s 6-4, 6-1 defeat means that her record against opponents ranked in the top ten now stands at played five, lost five, without a single set to her name. But it would be unfair to focus too much on the negatives. Raducanu is still early in her comeback, and there was plenty to like about this performance, especially in a run of three straight games that made the first set interesting.
“Tough match,” said Raducanu afterwards. “I think Ons is a difficult opponent, so credit to her. She played really well, and personally just a match that I need to forget about. She has amazing hand skills, makes life really hard for you on the court. And especially with the balls, which are really heavy and dead, it’s difficult to generate [pace]. So her defensive skills are great and I think that’s something I can improve on too.”
Jabeur is a hot-and-cold sort of player who has turned in some duff performances recently, including a virtual no-show against 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva at last month’s Australian Open which saw the world No 6 win just two games.
This was a completely different story, however. As the most successful Arab player in history, Jabeur is effectively playing at home in Abu Dhabi. (At least, that’s how the local fans see it, even though she actually comes from Tunisia.
She seemed to be inspired by the support, as she struck no fewer than 35 clean winners, which worked out to two per game. Eight of these were aces – for Jabeur hits an unexpectedly big serve for a woman standing only 5ft 6in tall – and several stemmed from her trademark drop shots.
