Raducanu outclassed by Rybakina in US Open exit

Emma Raducanu, a British Open champion, was brutally defeated in the third round by fellow Grand Slam champion Elena Rybakina.

The 22-year-old Raducanu was hoping to shock an elite player with a statement victory to highlight her recent progress, but she was defeated 6-1, 6-2.

Raducanu’s serve was repeatedly hammered by ninth-seeded Rybakina, who returned with devastating force four more times.

The tone for what followed was set by Raducanu’s slow start to her serve, which was broken at the first attempt after falling 0-40 at the match.

The world number 36 appeared hopeless after quickly falling behind and struggled to enter rallies before losing in 62 minutes.

Only three of her 18 professional matches against top-10 players have resulted in victories for Raducanu.

The 2021 US Open champion was the last Briton to lose in the women’s singles, but Cameron Norrie continues to fly the country’s flag in the men’s draw.

In the third round on Friday, Norrie, 29, will face 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic.

As a teenage qualifier for the 2021 title, Raducanu returned to New York this year on a high of optimism.

She has played some of her best tennis since that extraordinary triumph, and she is on the verge of regaining her composure.

However, this set off a fresh perspective.

With her enormous serve and perceptive returns, Raducanu warned of Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, having the ability to take the racquet of an opponent’s hand.

In a one-sided first set that only lasted 27 minutes, that is exactly what happened.

A stream of winners painted the baseline, leaving Raducanu looking rather helpless, with Rybakina’s groundstrokes being crisp and clean off both wings.

Rybakina, 26, who won 23 games, underlined her dominance from the backcourt.

In two decisive victories over Janice Tjen and Ena Shibahara from lowly ranked qualifiers, Raducanu had a solid foundation on the serve.

However, she did not receive nearly as many first serves as Rybakina, which immediately put her at odds with a classmate who was a significant improvement.

In the second set, Kazakhstan’s Rybakina continued to dominate with a top-notch baseline power.

Although it was believed that Raducanu had a chance to move Rybakina around the court based on her opponent’s ball’s speed, she was unable to do so.

Rybakina had never before advanced past the third round at Flushing Meadows despite winning numerous WTA titles on hard courts.