British tennis sensation, Emma Raducanu was knocked out of the Miami Open by Canada’s Bianca Andreescu after a thrilling first-round match that showcased the huge potential both players still possess.
The British number one, 20, lost 6-3 3-6 6-2 against 22-year-old Andreescu, who also won the US Open as a teenager.
A tight contest ran away from Raducanu when Andreescu won the last four games.
Two more Britons – Andy Murray and Kyle Edmund – play in the first round of the men’s singles later on Wednesday.
Former world number one Murray, 35, plays Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic about 21:00 GMT, while Edmund continues his comeback from a knee injury against China’s Yibing Wu at a similar time.
According to BBC, Raducanu, ranked 72nd in the world, enjoyed a productive week in Indian Wells before moving on to Miami, having reached the last 16 in the Californian desert despite her preparation being hampered by a bout of tonsillitis and the recurrence of a wrist injury.
And so it teed up an intriguing contest between two exciting players who reminded everyone of their considerable talent in an enjoyable encounter.
Raducanu, who won the New York title as a qualifier in 2021, was broken in her first service game of the match when she pushed a forehand wide and Andreescu moved 2-0 ahead with what proved to be a critical break in the opening set.
Former Miami finalist Andreescu continued to apply pressure on Raducanu’s serve while dominating on her own, retaining composure to seal an opener which she had long controlled after Britain had seen off three other set points.
Raducanu’s unforced errors had far outweighed her winners but she found her rhythm in the second set, looking comfortable on serve and returning with more quality.
As the Briton moved 4-3 ahead with the set still on serve, her belief continued to grow.
She cranked up the pressure in a gripping eighth game, 31st-ranked Andreescu showing incredible resistance and resilience to save six breakpoints, but eventually buckling and enabling Raducanu to take the match into a decider
“I will keep you updated about where I play next, because it depends on my process of recovering and the recommendation of my medical team.
“It’s a truly difficult call to not play in Miami and the BJK Cup, but health is the most important.”
Writing by Fany Olumoye; editing by Julian Osamoto