Emma Raducanu admitted she still has “a long way to go” to match the world’s top players after suffering a heavy defeat to Amanda Anisimova at Indian Wells. The British player was beaten in just 52 minutes as Anisimova delivered a dominant performance to reach the fourth round.
Raducanu struggles to compete
Emma Raducanu managed only two winners compared with 21 from Amanda Anisimova during the one-sided contest at the Indian Wells Open.
Anisimova, the sixth seed and runner-up at both Wimbledon and the US Open last year, secured a commanding 6-1 6-1 victory. Raducanu lost her serve in the opening game and won only 11 points in the first set before briefly holding serve in the second set.
Raducanu said the difference in power and serve speed made it difficult to compete against one of the game’s top players.
Aggressive approach still developing
The 2021 US Open champion said she needs to be more aggressive when facing elite opponents but admitted she is still working towards achieving that consistently.
Raducanu has recently been training with temporary coach Mark Petchey after parting ways with Francisco Roig earlier this year. She hopes the partnership will help her rediscover the style that led to her breakthrough Grand Slam triumph.
Despite the defeat, Raducanu said her practice sessions and earlier victory over Anastasia Zakharova during the tournament showed positive signs.
Anisimova advances as stars progress
Anisimova now moves into the fourth round, where she will face Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko.
Elsewhere in the tournament, world number four Coco Gauff retired from her match against Alexandra Eala due to a painful arm injury that she described as feeling like “a firework going off” inside her arm.
World number one Aryna Sabalenka advanced with a strong win over Jaqueline Cristian and will face Naomi Osaka in the next round, while Italy’s Jannik Sinner and Germany’s Alexander Zverev also progressed in the men’s draw.
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