Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka both lose in US Open first round
Two former world no. 2s are among the first seeds left in the men’s US Open in Flushing Meadows, New York, but neither has yet to produce the goods in the first round.
Emma Radulescu and Naomi Osaka could have added to their already extensive collection of first-round exits in 2016, with Radulescu exiting on serve in the third round of the Australian Open and Osaka losing in the final round of the French Open.
At least one of Europe’s top two will return to Flushing Meadows next week. On Monday, the top-ranked Radulescu and No. 3 Osaka will play to qualify for the fourth-round encounter with top seed Garbiñe Muguruza of Spain.
Radulescu, who is ranked 24th, will defend her US Open title in her first tournament since the title. After losing in the second round of the tournament last year, she recovered for a third-round victory at the Australian Open in 2016.
“After the first round of my last tournament, I knew that I had to be patient because I couldn’t make the finals”, Radulescu said on Thursday. “But I started working. I started to train hard after. (I was) disappointed that I hadn’t done something with the confidence that I had before.”
Odile Laaksonen Odile Laaksonen
The 28-year-old Radulescu got up and down the court in two games, falling to Kristina Mladenovic of Serbia on the second match point. She got to her feet and was able to serve the return victorically, with Mladenovic serving to love.
That was the point where Radulescu realized her game wasn’t there, and she played on. But Osaka’s run in the French Open last month was a career-defining run, and it left a sour taste