Britain’s Emma Raducanu thrilled the home fans on Monday as she secured a comfortable opening victory over Alison van Uytvanck at Wimbledon 2022.
The 10th seed produced some stunning tennis as she battled her way past Van Uytvanck with relative ease, 6-4 6-4, on Centre Court.
The Belgium threw everything she could at Raducanu, but the US Open champion had too much when it mattered and won the crucial points she needed to remain in control.
Early nerves had been anticipated, but the 19-year-old’s victory was an impressive one as she clinched her spot in the second round in style.
Remarkably, given the fact that she has already won a Grand Slam, this was Raducanu’s debut on Centre Court – and the fans certainly enjoyed the moment.
“It’s an incredibly special feeling to come back here to Wimbledon,” Raducanu said as the crowd cheered in her post-match interview.
“The minute I walked out of those doors, walking around the grounds, it’s all worth the tough times to play on Centre Court and to come through with a win.
“Alison is an extremely tricky opponent, she has had some great results on grass in the last few weeks. I played her last summer, and especially on the grass courts when the ball stays so low, it’s tricky to neutralise such a great and flat serve, and she hits the ball really hard.
“I’m extremely pleased to come through that match and I’m looking forward to coming out again.”
“I’ve been feeling the love of the home support ever since I stepped onto the practice court on the first day, feeling people behind me going, ‘Emma, you’ve got this!’ and I was like ‘yeah, I got this!’. I’m so happy to play here and stay another day.”
Next up for Raducanu will be a second-round encounter with France’s Caroline Garcia after she defeated another Brit, Yuriko Miyazaki, in their opening match.
