Defending US Open champion Emma Raducanu is back on American soil. She advanced to the quarterfinals of the Citi Open on Thursday with a hard-fought 7-6(5), 7-6(4) win over Camila Osorio in 2 hours and 50 minutes, the longest main-draw match in the 2022 WTA.
Here are three takeaways from Raducanu’s win:
Never count on Osorio…but Raducanu was ready: Osorio’s rise through the ranks last year was defined by a string of improbable comeback wins, and his come-from-behind fighting spirit was evident against Raducanu . In both sets, the Colombian has dragged herself into contention despite facing significant deficits.
Raducanu had a point to lead 5-1 in the first set, and three break points to go up a double break 5-2 in the second. But Osorio deployed his full range to come close to stealing both, holding two set points at 5-4 in the first set and coming within two points of tying the match at 6-5 in the second set.
Less confident going forward, Osorio helped Raducanu with double faults on his two set points in the first set. But in the two tiebreakers, it was Raducanu who was wary of losing his advantages to keep up. From 5-3 down in the first set tiebreaker, the 19-year-old hit her best trio of points – a pass, a drop shot and a return winner – to regain control. In the second, a remarkable hold at 5-4 led to Osorio’s error and gave Raducanu a match point, who converted with a service winner.
Winning ugly could be a confidence booster: Conditions in Washington were grueling, with temperatures hovering around 90 degrees with 62% humidity. Both players required medical timeouts due to blisters. Consequently, the stat sheet wasn’t the prettiest. Raducanu committed 51 unforced errors and Osorio 60.
“Honestly, three hours in those conditions, I think I probably played in Landisville, Pennsylvania last year, and I’d say there were probably worse conditions, but I wasn’t there for three hours with the length of the rallies that today I’ve been out there,” Raducanu said. “So conditions-wise it was probably hotter and tougher there, but match-wise I think it’s got to be one of the most physical matches I’ve ever played in.”
It was a contrast to Raducanu’s US Open last year, when his entire game clicked over 10 games in three weeks. As the teenager has adapted to the main tour this year, however, she has come out on the wrong end of some heartbreaking losses up front, most notably to Petra Martic and Katerina Siniakova in Indian Wells and Miami respectively.
This match could easily have turned into something similar after Raducanu fell short of a 5-4 win in the second set, throwing back-to-back double faults and a tame forehand at the net. But preparing to rally for the tiebreaker was another step along his learning curve.
Liudmila Samsonova will be a formidable quarter-final test: Raducanu’s opponent in the round of 16 will be Liudmila Samsonova, who beat Ajla Tomljanovic 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 in 2 hours and 14 minutes. They have never met before.
Highlights: Samsonova d. Tomljanovic
Raducanu’s run this week has put him in his third quarter-final since winning the US Open, following Cluj-Napoca last October and Stuttgart in April. Overcoming this stage would be an important barrier to overcome.