Emma Raducanu loses Eastbourne International quarter-final to Daria Kasatkina 6-2 6-2 on Thursday; fellow Britons Katie Boulter and Harriet Dart also lose quarters to Jasmine Paolini and Leylah Fernandez respectively; 15-year-old British schoolgirl Hannah Klugman misses out on Wimbledon
Emma Raducanu insists she feels ready for Wimbledon, despite going down 6-2 6-2 to Daria Kasatkina in the Eastbourne International.
Russian Kasatkina stormed ahead to claim a dominant first set, and though Raducanu recovered from an early break in the second to break straight back, she was no match for the rest of the encounter. From 1-1 back on serve, Kasatkina proceeded to rattle to 4-1 ahead in the second set – breaking Raducanu twice more – before serving the match out for 6-2 after the pair traded breaks again before the end.
Raducanu struggled to adapt to blustery conditions during her comprehensive defeat, but the 2021 US Open champion, who missed the entire 2023 grass-court season following wrist and ankle surgery, dismissed any concerns about her fitness ahead of Wimbledon, for which she has received a wildcard.
Raducanu failed to get to grips with Kasatkina in the relatively one-sided Centre Court contest. However, the 21-year-old, who missed the entire grass-court season last year following wrist and ankle surgery, heads to the Wimbledon buoyed by impressive wins over Sloane Stephens and world No 5 Jessica Pegula.
Raducanu showed occasional glimpses of her class, catching the eye with a superb backhand sliced winner as she saved four set points in the opener. Yet she blew a 40-0 lead on serve early in the second set and was broken six times overall as powerful Kasatkina dominated the majority of the rallies to secure progression.
