Emma Raducanu made light work of her opening match at the Queen's Club Championship, breezing past Anna Blinkova in straight sets.
They had to deal with interruptions due to poor weather, but it did not affect Raducanu, who earned a 6-0 6-3 win to reach the round of 16.
Raducanu started strongly and, after getting her first break, had to hold off Blinkova's attempted fightback as the Russian forced three break points, but the Brit held strong.
The home favourite then reeled off the next three games as well for the loss of just three points to take the first set, before also winning the first two of the second.
Blinkova finally got on the board after that, though, with the pair trading breaks, and the qualifier pulled back to level at 3-3.
However,
Raducanu soon regained her groove and won the last three games, getting over the line on her second match point.
Fully in control @EmmaRaducanu powers through into the Round of 16 at @QueensTennis!#HSBCChampionships pic.twitter.com/4UfAxt60av
— wta (@WTA) June 9, 2026
Raducanu ends long wait to taste victory
Raducanu has endured a frustrating 2026 for the most part, with injuries hampering a lot of her season, and her return had hardly gone to plan before Tuesday (Jneu 9).
Her last win came back in the Indian Wells round of 64 on March 6, and she has since lost her last three matches, including a disappointing first-round defeat at the French Open.
However, Raducanu took just 64 minutes to find her way past Blinkova, who struggled to mount much of an attack, and it will be a much-needed confidence boost.
Especially given the 23-year-old won 72% of her first-serve points (18/25), while also converting six of the eight break points she forced.
