Raducanu ends season with defeat to China’s Wang at Linz Open

UNSEEDED Chinese Wang Xinyu caused an upset at the Linz Open on Tuesday as she took out US Open champion Emma Raducanu (6-1, 6-7(0), 7-5) in an absorbing three-setter to book her place in the quarterfinals of the WTA 250 event in Austria.

The defeat brought the curtain down on Raducanu’s breakthrough season, during which she won her maiden Grand Slam, at Flushing Meadows in September.

Wang, 20, got off to a blistering start and clinched the opener in just under half an hour as her deep returns forced the top seed into a number of errors. Raducanu was unable to match her opponent, who won over 85% of points on her first serve.

The 18-year-old Briton responded well in the second set, breaking in the first game following a rare error from Wang before the Chinese qualifier, ranked 106 in the world, hit back with a break of her own at 3-4.

Raducanu, however, outclassed Wang in the tie-breaker, striking a flurry of winners to win seven straight points and force a decider.

With the match poised at 4-4 in the third, Raducanu, seeking only her third win since her victory in New York, had to summon the trainer for what appeared to be an injury to her right leg.

Despite the blow, Raducanu stayed in the contest by saving two match points at 4-5 but was eventually overpowered by Wang, who broke in the 11th game and comfortably closed out the match on serve when Raducanu sent a backhand long. — Reuters