Playing against 15,000 opponents is no easy task, but that is what Aryna Sabalenka must have felt she was up against as she faced Britain’s big hope, Emma Raducanu, in a rollicking third-round Wimbledon showdown on Friday.
With each Raducanu winner greeted by earth-shattering roars and every Sabalenka error wildly cheered by the masses, the Belarusian was left shaken and stirred as it appeared she would become the most high-profile name to join the exodus of Wimbledon seeds.
However, just as spectators within Centre Court and thousands more packed on a heaving Henman Hill started to believe Raducanu had the momentum and the weapons to topple the top seed, Sabalenka’s survival instincts kicked in and she secured a 7-6 (7/6) 6-4 victory.
Photo: Reuters
There are days when the final score does little justice to the drama that unfolded during two hours of pure theater.
Anyone looking up the result would have no idea Raducanu was 4-2 up in the first set and held a 4-1 lead in the second. They would be equally clueless that the 22-year-old saved seven set points with some incredible serving at 4-5 down in the first set.
The score also fails to convey that Raducanu served for the first set after breaking for a 6-5 lead and had a set point in the tiebreak. No one would guess she was a point away from grabbing a 5-1 lead in the second set after holding a break point in the sixth game.
Photo: AP
Yet for all her heroics, getting over the finishing line proved a step too far for Raducanu.
“Wow, what an atmosphere. My ears are still hurting. It was super loud. Every time you were cheering her, I was trying to tell myself to just pretend that you were just cheering for me. I had goosebumps,” Sabalenka told the crowd after improving her record over British opponents to 9-0.
“She played such incredible tennis, and she pushed me really hard. To get this win, I had to fight for every point like crazy,” she added.
Wimbledon fans are no strangers to floodlit blockbusters featuring British home favorites, with Andy Murray providing plenty of late-night thrills under a closed Centre Court roof during his stellar career.
After being kept waiting until 8pm to take center stage, it was Raducanu’s turn to provide all the drama as she played electrifying tennis to surge into a 4-2 lead in the first set.
The 22-year-old Raducanu kept the Belarusian guessing with her breathtaking shot-making that earned her a break in the fifth game to the delight of the crowd that kept turning up the volume with every Raducanu winner.
Although Sabalenka, the sole survivor among the top six women’s seeds, gained back the break, she was left shell-shocked when she missed seven set points in the 10th game as Raducanu kept slamming the door shut with pinpoint deliveries that left the crowd erupting time and time again.
At the eighth time of asking, in the tiebreak, Sabalenka finally silenced the crowd when she produced a stop volley to bag the set, her achievement greeted by only a smattering of applause.
Raducanu, who has spent a long time in the tennis wilderness following her triumph upset at the US Open in 2021 as a qualifier, wanted to prove she was back to her best by following up her win over 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova with a victory over Sabalenka.
When she surged into a 4-1 lead in the second and then had a break point to take a 5-1 lead, she appeared to be on the verge of dragging the contest into a deciding set.
However, just when it seemed she had the mindset to beat an opponent who has contested the last three Grand Slam finals, reality struck.
Sabalenka turned on the power to win the last five games to extinguish Raducanu’s hopes of reaching the fourth round for the third time, with the Briton netting a service return on match point.
“It’s hard to take a loss like that. At the same time ... I’m really going to remember that match because, you play for those moments, to really be competing toe-to-toe with the very best,” world No. 40 Raducanu said. “I’m really grateful for all the support ... it was electric. They were really behind me. Just disappointed I couldn’t get over the line.”
The top seed is to next face Belgium’s Elise Mertens.
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