Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka both lose in US Open first round
Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka lost to Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Petra Cetkovská on Tuesday, both in the first round at the US Open women’s tennis tournament in New York.
Raducanu was beaten in straight sets by Bethanie Mattek-Sands 6-1, 6-1, but Osaka fell to the Czech qualifier 6-3, 6-4.
The tournament was won by Venus Williams, as she overcame Daria Gavrilova 7-5, 6-2. The 23-year-old American, ranked number 15 in the world, is going for her fifth straight Grand Slam title.
“It’s a beautiful moment,” said Osaka, who will now have three months off from competing on the tour. “I was really looking forward to it. It was a hard match, and I just kind of had to play and adapt to the situation to be ready when the match started.
“In the first set I really had it in my game and I felt really good. I could just see the game plan and I was ready for it, and I can’t complain at all.”
Older sister
“I was really excited to play here. I’m looking forward to it,” Osaka said. “I played my first two sets. I wasn’t comfortable with the match, and I wasn’t comfortable with the scoreline at all, but I took a lot of positives from it.
“I know it’s just the first round, and now I just take it as a learning experience. I wish my mom didn’t get so stressed and I could go to the US Open without worrying all the time.
“She always has to make sure that I’m prepared for practice every day, and I got two weeks off for that. I’ll try and go out there and play normally, and try to enjoy it as much as I can.
“At the same time,
