Emma Raducanu was heavy favourite for yesterday’s Wimbledon first-round match against Mimi Xu, and made that expectation pay as she recorded a comprehensive victory.
As the older and far more experienced of the two, the 22-year-old went about her business with a minimal fuss against the 17-year-old who was making her debut in a Grand Slam main draw.
Xu had praised Raducanu in the run-up to the clash, but during she was anything but nice.
Hopefully, that ruthlessness can serve her well heading into her tricky second-round match against Marketa Vondrousova.
However, it’s a glowing endorsement of Emma Raducanu’s character with how she reacted after the match, as Xu would reveal.
How Emma Raducanu reacted to beating Mimi Xu at Wimbledon
Speaking on BBC 5 Live, the teenage sensation remained as in awe of Raducanu as she was beforehand, especially after their meeting in the gym in the immediate aftermath of the match.
Xu first admitted: ‘Yes, 100%. I just, I really wanted it to last a bit longer, but unfortunately, it didn’t. But, yeah, I know. It’s honestly the best moment of my life.’
She then revealed: ’Um, yeah, after we were both in the gym, like, cooling down, she came up to us, like, I gave her a hug and she was like, she was really supportive, really nice, and she even, like told me, you know, what kind of, what I needed to do better.
‘But, yeah, I know, but I honestly, I think she’s an amazing person, I’m really just, like, honoured to play her in my Wimbledon debut, my Grand Slam debut, and I’ve got so much to look up to her for and just yeah, she really inspires a lot of us.’
Emma Raducanu’s Wimbledon draw only gets harder
Admittedly, Raducanu’s Wimbledon draw offered her one of the easier starts on paper, against an inexperienced teenager who was in awe of her.
However, the difficulty ramps up significantly following that, as she now faces Vondrousova in the second round.
For the 2023 Wimbledon champion, it has been tough for the 26-year-old since that triumph.
Alas, just earlier this month she won her very first title since then in Berlin, shocking Aryna Sabalenka on her way to the final.
Ironically, it’s the world number one who will likely await one of Raducanu or Vondrousova in round three, for whoever should emerge victorious.
