Emma Raducanu loses in Australian Open second round to Danka Kovinic after hand injury
Published: 11:12, 20 January 2022
Updated: 11:15, 20 January 2022
Emma Raducanu crashed out of the Australian Open after struggling with a hand injury during her second round match on Thursday.
The 19-year-old from Orpington had to contend with blisters on her right hand from early in the first set against Montenegro's Danka Kovinic.
It had all been going to plan for number 17 seed Raducanu who raced into a 3-0 lead in the first set.
But she then lost six of the next seven games - and the first set - in a run that included a medical timeout as she seeked treatment while clearly in pain.
It meant Raducanu had little power on her forehand and she opted to slice the vast majority of balls while still having full power on the backhand.
A superb effort saw Raducanu take the second set 6-4 but she then had her serve broken twice midway through the third set.
At 5-3 up in the final set, 27-year-old Kovinic was serving for the match and her first-ever third round berth at a Grand Slam. And she successfully held on to record the best win of her career, in over two and a half hours, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3.
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