How riverside walk & a nap set up Raducanu for dominant Melbourne win

Emma Raducanu, the British no. 1, said taking a nap and going for a walk along the Melbourne river helped her get ready for the Australian Open first round victory.

In the second night session of Margaret Court Arena, the 23-year-old overcame a shaky start to sail past Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew.

Raducanu dropped serve early in the match against the world number 196, making her debut appearance at major since the 2022 US Open.

However, the former US Open champion eventually found her groove, winning seven games in a row and coming home with a 6-4, 6-1 victory just before 11 p.m. local time.

In her on-court interview, Raducanu said, “I had a potter around Melbourne this morning by the river, had a nap, came out, and the atmosphere was electric.”

“I want to thank everyone who stayed so late. On both sides, there was incredible support.

Raducanu booked a late-night training session on Saturday to get ready for the cold, sluggish nighttime conditions.

However, Alexander Bublik, a male 10th seed, won a dominant straight-set match against American Jenson Brooksby in less than two hours, making it an earlier start than she had anticipated.

The preparation began yesterday when I scheduled a court appointment from 21:15 to 23:15, according to Raducanu.

The ball doesn’t bounce as much through the air or bounce as high as it does during the day; it moves much slower and colder.

In 2025, Raducanu made encouraging progress, placing her back in the top 30 on the global stage and winning more matches than she had in any other career season.

However, a foot injury prevented the technical work she had planned for the off-season with coach Francisco Roig, who helped Rafael Nadal win 16 of his 22 major titles.

She only managed one victory before losing to world number 204 Taylah Preston in her final game before the first major of the year in Hobart.

As Sawangkaew, who made her Grand Slam main draw debut, burst onto the scene with aggressive returns and deft net play, it appeared as though Raducanu might experience yet another upset.

In the third game, she broke the Briton and had a 4-1 lead, but Raducanu followed with a few brave winners to keep her from even more distant.

After that, Raducanu picked up the game, striking back to tie the match 4-4 before breaking once more to take the opener.

She won 27 of the 40 points offered in the second set, continuing to overpower the Thai player, with an ace that sealed her victory.

I’m relieved to have won the match, “very much.” “I always believed that she was playing very well,” said the 28th seed, Raducanu.