If there was a sense of the unknown as Emma Raducanu emerged on the opening morning of the Australian Open, left ankle strapped, it did not last for long. A convincing 6-3 6-2 victory over Tamara Korpatsch not only put any questions surrounding her fitness to bed, but featured some early flashes of Raducanu hitting fearlessly for the lines to suggest she has also arrived in Melbourne in a good place. It sets up a first meeting with Coco Gauff in the second-round, in what is a blockbuster clash of two teenage stars.
Raducanu will be relieved to have made it after her disrupted build-up to the first grand slam of the season, but apart from the tape around her left ankle there was little evidence of the injury the 19-year-old suffered in Auckland just 11 days ago. Raducanu’s training had been limited since rolling her ankle on the indoor courts at the ASB Classic, in what was a “freak injury”, and the only concern on the opening Monday at Melbourne Park was a slight wobble on her right ankle midway through the second set.
