Emma Raducanu beats former US Open champion Sloane Stephens in Eastbourne opener ahead of Wimbledon

Emma Raducanu has cruised into the second round of the Rothesay International after a straight-sets win over fellow former US Open champion Sloane Stephens in Eastbourne.

Raducanu twice battled back from a break down to take the opening set before rattling through the second in impressive fashion, claiming a 6-4 6-0 victory to the delight of the home crowd.

The 2021 US Open champion has struggled with form and injuries in recent seasons, but said ahead of this week’s event that she was confident “good things are 100 per cent going to happen” after rekindling her love of tennis.

Raducanu, who has a wild card into Wimbledon next week, will play second seed Jessica Pegula – who received a bye – in the next round.

“It was a very close first set and I was down quite a bit all the way through and managed to break,” Raducanu said. “But it’s very difficult because Sloane is super athletic and, in the first set especially, she was making a lot of balls and counter-punching really well.

“It took a lot to try and hit through her but I managed to figure it out in the second set.”

Raducanu missed the entire grass-court season last year following surgery on both wrists and one ankle, yet she showed little sign of any fitness troubles as she warmed up for Wimbledon in devastating fashion by building on her recent run to the semi-finals of Nottingham.

Having been cheered on to Centre Court by a supportive home crowd, Raducanu was aggressive from the outset. A succession of early holds was followed by four consecutive breaks of service during which the home favourite impressively dug in to prevent 31-year-old American Stephens gaining the upper hand.

A deft drop shot followed by an ace in game nine helped turn the contest in Raducanu’s favour before she unleashed a stunning backhand cross-court winner en route to sealing the set.

She then cruised through the second set as world No 45 Stephens, who triumphed at Flushing Meadows in 2017, struggled to cope with her opponent’s power and precision.

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