Raducanu’s latest bitter loss offers a reminder of tennis’s exacting standards

The 21-year-old's decision to dodge four weeks of hard court events left her ill prepared for a typically tough encounter

Late on Tuesday night in Arthur Ashe stadium, Emma Raducanu wiped away tears as she digested another bitter loss in the first round of the US Open. Her tight, frantic three-set defeat against Sofia Kenin, at the tournament that yielded her career-defining victory three years ago, was even more painful given how tight the encounter had been.

While Kenin, the 2020 Australian Open champion, had been in poor form coming into the final grand slam tournament of the year, she rose to the occasion of facing a distinguished opponent and played a fantastic match.