Emma Raducanu reached the quarter-finals of the Korea Open after beating eighth seed Yue Yuan in straight sets. The 21-year-old needed seven match points to secure a hard-fought 6-4, 6-3 victory over the eighth seed.
Raducanu edged ahead following a close first set and powered ahead at the start of the second, holding off a comeback from Yuan and serving eight aces during the second set.
Raducanu had battled past American Peyton Stearns in the previous round to set up the meeting with Yuan, which was incredibly tight in the opening stages.
The momentum shifted when some solid forehands allowed Raducanu to level at 4-4 and she broke Yuan’s serve in the following game to go in front.
After taking a medical timeout, the Briton then successfully served out the set and quickly picked up where she left off to take control in the second set, breaking Yuan’s serve in the opening game before extending her lead in the second, which included two aces. She won her sixth straight game of the match to go 3-0 up but was broken in the fourth game as Yuan pulled one back and the Chinese player looked to pile on the pressure.
Although Yuan looked like she was beginning to find her rhythm, Raducanu fought back to hold serve and extend her lead further in a close sixth game. The eighth game produced seven deuces and Raducanu missed five match points before Yuan eventually held serve, but the Briton stopped any chance of a late comeback by wrapping up victory in the following game.
Afterwards, Raducanu said: “I think my key to the success today is trying to let go of any frustration that happened. Closing out the match I had a lot of match points and couldn’t convert so just staying focused and breaking in that last game.”
