Emma Raducanu made her return to the tennis court on Wednesday (September 17) in the first round of the Korea Open.
It was the British no. 1's first appearance since being comprehensively beaten by Elena Rybakina in the third round at the 2025 US Open.
Raducanu was initially meant to be competing for Team GB at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Shenzhen this week, but she opted to play in Seoul instead after receiving a wildcard entry.
Her opening round match with Jaqueline Cristian was originally scheduled for Tuesday (September 16), but rainy conditions pushed the contest back a day.
Despite struggling in parts against Cristian, Raducanu was able to come through with a 6-3 6-4 win.
While the scoreboard may suggest the 2021 US Open champion eased through to the next round, the match was a competitive contest in reality, with it lasting over two hours.
📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
Getty
How the contest in Korea unfolded
Raducanu recovered from an early break in the opening set when she levelled the score at 3-3, and then fought off two break points in her following service game to take the lead.
The eighth seed was able to land a successive break after Cristian committed a double fault, going up 5-3 before fighting off another two break points in the next game to clinch the set.
Both players struggled to hold serve early in the second set, with the pair being broken twice by one another. However, it was Raducanu who found the decisive break in the ninth game.
When serving out for the match, the 22-year-old had to fight off a break point yet again before eventually sealing her passage to the next round.
Coming out on 🔝@EmmaRaducanu digs deep for a straight sets victory against Cristian, 6-3, 6-4.#KoreaOpen pic.twitter.com/5yYNMqAAea
— wta (@WTA) September 17, 2025
After beating her Romanian opponent, Raducanu expressed pure relief at coming away with the victory, particularly because of the weather delays.
"Super happy to have won today. It hasn’t been easy, I feel like I’ve played this match the last three days," she said in her on-court interview.
"To have pulled through after waiting, I’m super pleased with how I came through," the Brit added.
Raducanu will face two-time Grand Slam champion Barbora Krejcikova in the next round on Thursday (September 18), after the Czech defeated Tatiana Prozorova in her opening match in Seoul.
Tennis news and related links
17-year-old American wins first ever WTA title in Guadalajara
Jannik Sinner mentions how he can improve after US Open final loss to Carlos Alcaraz