Emma Raducanu triumphs in straight sets over newcomer Mimi Xu in first round at Wimbledon
Emma Raducanu made a solid start to this year's championship as she triumphed in straight sets over newcomer Mimi Xu.
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The British Number One progressed to the second round after beating rival Mimi Xu in straight sets on the first day of the tournament.
This was Xu's debut senior match at a major, and the 17-year-old was unable to really test the British number one’s nerve, with Raducanu easing to a 6-3 6-3 victory.
Raducanu smiled and waved as she entered Court One to cheers on a baking afternoon in SW19, while Xu had her ears covered by large headphones.
The Swansea player made a nervous start and Raducanu immediately broke serve but, after holding a long third game, Xu settled down and began to show her promise.
Xu sent down serves close to 120mph and troubled Raducanu on occasion with her powerful ground strokes but a missed second serve return at 4-3 30-30 showed her inexperience, and the first set disappeared in a slew of errors.
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Raducanu appeared at ease during the break, as she picked up a champagne cork that had flown from the stands on to the court with a chuckle and put it in a bin.
Xu’s best moments came early in the second set when she twice broke the Raducanu serve, earning her reward for staying on the front foot and going for the lines.
She could not hold her own delivery, though, and Raducanu clinched her first match point after 85 minutes to maintain her record of never having lost in the first round.
Raducanu will face Marketa Vondrousova in the second round of this year's tournament. It was Radacanu's win over the Czech in the second round in 2021 that first made the tennis world sit up and take notice, but Vondrousova earned her place in Wimbledon history two years later by becoming the first unseeded women’s singles champion.
Raducanu was happy to clear the first hurdle, saying: “I’m super pleased to have come through that match. It’s so difficult playing another Brit first round. When the draw came out, I can’t say I was loving it.”
Shortly before today's match, Raducanu revealed that a back injury is still troubling her and that has few ambitions for this year's tournament.
Earlier today, she also quashed rumours of a possible romance with men's world number two Carlos Alcaraz.
Asked if she and Alcaraz, the defending Wimbledon champion, were dating, Raducanu told a press conference: “We’re good friends.”