Emma Raducanu continued her push for the main draw of the US Open after powering past Peyton Stearns in straight sets to secure a place in the Washington Open quarter-finals.
The British player, who turned down the chance to represent Team GB at the Olympics, defeated the American 7-6, 6-2, despite lengthy match delays due to a sudden downpour. She will now face the winner of Thursday’s meeting between wild card Paula Badosa and third seed Liudmila Samsonova.
Raducanu encountered choppy waters in the fourth game, surviving two break points as double faults began to pile up, but she showed resolve to close out the game, then breaking her opponent in the fifth game.
Stearns, ranked No 51 in the world, produced some classy shots but Raducanu remained in control until heavy rain arrived just as she served to secure the opening set. After a two-hour delay, she then clinched the first set 7-6 (6) in a tiebreaker.
“It’s tricky today, when you get rained off at such a big moment like that. It can affect the dynamics of the match,” Raducanu said. “I think I did a pretty good job of coming out pretty strong and toughing out that tiebreak.”
With the first set under her belt, the 2021 US Open Champion then broke Stearns early in the second, going up 3-0 early on.
Raducanu, now No 69 in the world, thanked the crowd for their patience during the late-night thriller. “I knew it was going to be a tough match against Peyton, especially [her] playing at home,” she said. “It’s been a good run for me in the last few months, I think I’m building some momentum.”
The 21-year-old, who is still managing her comeback after wrist and ankle surgery, chose not to compete in Paris because she did not want to switch back to playing on clay at Roland Garros before the forthcoming US Open.
“I made some pretty good strides in my game over the last few months,” Raducanu said before the tournament began. “I started the grass season ranked outside of 200 and finished it in the top 100. For me that was relatively successful. It guaranteed me a spot hopefully in the main draw of the US Open. That was a big thing for me. I wanted to make sure I got into the slams.
“Compared to a year ago, this time a year ago I hadn’t been touching tennis balls. Yeah, I didn’t touch a tennis ball until late November really. I’m very pleased to be in the place that I am, competing, healthy, just enjoying my tennis.”
