Emma Raducanu v Aryna Sabalenka live: Latest tennis score and updates from Cincinnati Open today – UK Times

Here was that incident with the umpire, who told Raducanu not to engage with her new coach on the side of the court:

Excellent by Raducanu, facing five set points, winning the first two with sweetly struck winners. But Sabalenka fires an almost unreturnable serve down the T, and that’s the first set sewn up.

Sabalenka speeds into the lead, with the help of a double fault by Raducanu. An ace gives Sabalenka a 5-1 lead at the change of ends.

Sabalenka gets lucky at 15-0 with a backhand which lands on the net cord, drawing Raducanu into an error. But the world No 1 is ruthless from there, bulldozing her way to a love-hold with a bankhand cross-court winner.

Raducanu hits a lovely forehand winner on to the tramline at 30-0, whipped over the net with top-spin, and then serves it out with an ace.

Sabalenka will serve to stay in the first set.

Sabalenka looks frustrated as she makes a couple of wild swings during her service game, but she still holds with an ace to stay on serve.

At 30-15, Raducanu throws in a loose double fault to give Sabalenka a sniff and the world No 1 earns herself a break point opportunity, but fires wide with a forehand to bring up deuce. An excellent wide serve by Raducanu gives her advantage, but she loses the next point and then follows it with another double fault.

Sabalenka is just as erratic with her return, though, eventually firing a forehand into the net and a backhand long to give up the game.

“Relax, stay positive,” says Francis Roig repeatedly to Raducanu from courtside.

Raducanu rushes over to speak to him at the end of the game, and she’s told off by the umpire: “You cannot actively go to him.”

“I cannot hear him, the music is too loud,” Raducanu complains.

“Then he needs to speak louder,” comes the umpire’s reply.

Break! Raducanu earns two break-back points at 15-40, but loses the first with a wild forehand on the stretch. She takes the next one, though, as Sabalenka crashes a backhand into the net!

We’ve got a match, here.

At 15-30 down, Raducanu twice serves to the Sabalenka backhand and draws errors to avoid facing more break points. She finishes off the game with a fabulous serve which hits the corner of the service box.

Sabalenka rattles off another service game and she’s in full control of this first set now.