Emma Raducanu said she was proud of how she kept her focus as she came from behind to defeat Veronika Kudermetova and reach the last-16 of the Italian Open.
After losing the first set, Raducanu dropped just one game as the Briton surged to a 5-7 6-0 6-1 victory and booked a clash with third seed Coco Gauff in Rome.
Raducanu was pleased with how she bounced back from the first set and didn’t let Kudermetova back into the contest, believing the former World No 9’s medical timeout late in the second set was an attempt to “throw me off”.
Kudermetova went off court for several minutes as Raducanu was forced to wait, but the 22-year-old kept her composure and highlighted the “big progress” she has made.
“The best thing about today I think was recovering after the first set having served for it,” Raducanu told Sky Sports.
“I threw in a pretty poor game at 5-4 serving but I felt under pressure on Veronika’s returns, she was literally red-lining everything and it was all going in and I was like, I don’t know where to serve, and it’s not a nice feeling to have.
“I’m so happy with how I didn’t let the rest of the match get away with me, that’s big progress compared to matches I’ve played in the past.”
Kudermetova lost her momentum after an unlucky moment in the opening game of the second set, when they Russian was dealt a bad bounce off the clay when leading 40-15 on serve.
Raducanu won the next four points to break, which started her comeback. She was asked afterwards how she negotiated Kudermetova’s timeout and said it was an attempt from her opponent to slow her down.
“It was difficult, luckily I was 5-0 up when she took the timeout. I kind of knew it was to throw me off but I kept my cool, luckily I had a good cushion and served it out,” Raducanu said.
“From the third set I was really on it. It’s hard after serving for the first set, it doesn’t just slip your mind, you do refer back to it even if you’re going into the third set. I’m really happy with how I refocused.
“I’m happy with the variety that I have on my shots, I’m able to return from two different positions up and back, which is new. I’ve adopted the back more in the last two matches and it’s helped me get into the point.
“But I still think I can be better out of the corners and moving, sometimes I feel a bit caught out still.”
Raducanu said she was not aware of her draw in Rome, which will see her face the World No 3 Gauff in the last-16, in what will be just their second meeting after a second-round match at the Australian Open in 2023.
Gauff, 21, has more experience and pedigree on clay, having reached a French Open final and featuring in the Madrid Open final last week, where she lost to World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
“She’s a great competitor,” Raducanu said. “I’m playing pretty good tennis right now and she is going to be a great test, she’s made the French Open final so she’s great on this surface. I’m going to keep focused but savour this one for now.”
