Emma Raducanu learns potential path to Seoul title

09/14/2024 08:20 PM

Emma Raducanu has learned her potential path to winning the WTA 500 tournament in Seoul as the British tennis player is set to start her campaign by taking on a player she recently defeated. 

On Saturday, the Korea Open draw was released and the 21-year-old drew 49th-ranked Peyton Stearns. It will be the second meeting between the two as the 2021 US Open champion beat the American 7-6 (6) 6-2 just over a month ago on the hard courts of Washington. 

Since the surface will be the same in Seoul, there is no reason not to think that Raducanu again enters the match as the favorite despite her early US Open exit.

If the former world No. 10 makes it past her opener at the Korea Open, next up for her would very likely be No. 8 seed Yuan Yue. In the quarterfinal, there could be a really attractive matchup if the 21-year-old and top-seeded Daria Kasatkina meet. 

Should Raducanu reach the last-four stage, she could possibly battle against either No. 4 seed Diana Shnaider or fifth-seeded Marta Kostyuk for a place in the final. 

In case the British tennis star makes her first final since the 2021 US Open, her likely opponents there would be either No. 2 seed Liudmila Samsonova or Beatriz Haddad Maia. 

When the current world No. 72 met Stearns the last time, it was both a physically and mentally demanding match for the Briton. In the first set, the 21-year-old held a 5-4 lead and was serving for the opener when rain started falling. 

After the match was suspended in one of the worst possible times for Raducanu, she got broken when the match as the American managed to tie the opener to five games apiece and eventually force a tie-break. Then, the former world No. 10 also missed out on two consecutive set points in the tie-break before earning her fourth set point and finally realizing it to go up by a set.

From that moment on, it got significantly easier for the Briton as she broke Stearns twice in the second set to complete her straight-set win. Later, she acknowledged that she battled tricky conditions but also a tricky opponent. 

"Honestly it was like 'why did I play that last point at 15-15', but I managed to get over that (unfortunate rain delay timing) quite quickly and actually have set point on that service game. It’s tricky today, when you get rained off at such a big moment like that. It can affect the dynamics of the match. I think I did a pretty good job of coming out pretty strong and toughing out that tiebreak. In the second set I was playing much better," Raducanu said after beating Stearns.

"I want to thank everyone's patience and waiting for the end of that match. I knew it was going to be a tough match against Peyton, especially playing at home, but I want to thank everyone for their support because honestly I felt like I was playing at home too."

After making her first semifinal as a pro on the Grand Slam level, the Briton struggled in the next couple of months. But in late 2021, she won her opening three matches in Seoul and reached her first WTA semifinal at the Korea Open - and there she was up by a set against Jelena Ostapenko before the Latvian took a 4-6 6-3 3-0 lead and the Briton retired due to injury.

“You’ve got to mark the moment, in a way. I think it’s pretty cool to have made my first semi-final and build my way on the tour the right way. And going through the stages. I think it is quite a nice reward for the hard work that I have done on the practice court and a lot of hours. It is a really nice feeling," Raducanu said after making the Seoul semifinal.

Going into this year's Korea Open edition, the former world No. 10 would certainly absolutely love to make another deep run because she needs it after losing in the US Open first round and afterward crying. 

“I feel down, I feel sad. Obviously, this is a tournament I really want to do well in so… after the first set I was outplayed completely and I think I did well to equal it. The third set was pretty high-level tennis and I think certain parts of my game in dealing with her speed of shot, dealing with her pace, certain parts I actually executed better than in previous matches. I came across a very in-form opponent, and she played really well," the 21-year-old said after losing to Sofia Kenin in the first round at Flushing Meadows.

It remains to be seen if Raducanu can make another strong Seoul run.