I received some pretty bad news – Emma Raducanu emotional after Eastbourne win
Amid blustery conditions, the British number one, who missed last week's Berlin Open as she managed a back problem, resumed her Wimbledon preparations with a 6-7 (5) 6-3 6-1 success.
Raducanu has been struggling with the issue since competing in Strasbourg before the French Open and took an off-court medical timeout during her quarter-final loss at Queen's Club earlier this month.
Emma Raducanu was overcome by emotion after the victory (Bradley Collyer/PA).
But, aside from a slip and fall on the grass in set one, she came through her opening examination at Devonshire Park unscathed.
The 2021 US Open champion produced an emotional response after sealing progression in two hours and 18 minutes with a fine backhand winner.
Asked about her reaction, Raducanu, 22, replied: 'I received some pretty bad news, so I would like to keep it personal, if that's OK?
'But it was difficult, very emotional at the end and probably just a release of different emotions.'
Raducanu's coach Mark Petchey and her Billie Jean King Cup team-mate Fran Jones were courtside for the match.
Victory over world number 64 Li sets up a second-round clash with 19-year-old Australian Maya Joint, who knocked out two-time Wimbledon runner-up Ons Jabeur on Monday.
'It was a physically demanding match,' said seventh seed Raducanu.
'It was pretty difficult and in the wind you are constantly trying to adjust. We had some long rallies, I was running a lot.
'I feel OK, a little bit of fatigue, a bit of stiffness, but I need to just see how I feel tomorrow.'
Earlier, Harriet Dart blew two match points on serve as she slipped to an agonising defeat to reigning Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova.
Harriet Dart is beaten in a tight battle with the Wimbledon champion#BackTheBrits 🇬🇧 | #LexusEastbourneOpen pic.twitter.com/vJD3VKX9ra
— LTA (@the_LTA) June 24, 2025
Following two suspensions of play in the opening set due to wet weather, the British number four moved to the brink of one of the greatest wins of her career.
But Krejcikova, who defeated Jasmine Paolini in last year's Wimbledon final, survived a first-round shock by hitting back to progress 6-3 6-7 (4) 7-5 in two hours and 40 minutes.
The second seed will face another Briton in round two following Jodie Burrage's 6-3 6-2 win over Japan's Moyuka Uchijima.
Dart did little to hide her frustration at failing to capitalise on the pair of match-clinching opportunities against the 2021 French Open champion, letting out a piercing scream as the following game slipped away.
'Some crazy, crazy conditions today,' said the 28-year-old. 'I was pretty close. I missed a ball on match point and then she played a really good other point on my other match point and then she becomes a bit freer. It was a tough match overall.
Billy Harris beat fellow Briton Cameron Norrie (Bradley Collyer/PA).
'My level was 10 times better than I've played the last two weeks. For me that's more important, especially going to Wimbledon.
'Of course, I'd like to have won today. But I was also playing a very experienced, multiple grand slam winner.'
British number three Sonay Kartal lost 6-3 7-6 (2) to 2021 Eastbourne champion Jelena Ostapenko, while 17-year-old compatriot Mimi Xu was defeated 6-3 6-4 by American world number 35 Peyton Stearns.
In the first round of the men's draw, Billy Harris won the battle of the Britons by upsetting Cameron Norrie 6-4 6-4.
British number two Jacob Fearnley knocked out fifth-seeded Italian Flavio Cobolli, winning 6-2 6-2.
British qualifier George Loffhagen lost 7-6 (6) 3-6 7-6 (1) to American Reilly Opelka, while Ilkley Open runner-up Jack Pinnington Jones went down 4-6 6-3 6-3 to Portuguese eighth seed Nuno Borges.
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BBC News
25 minutes ago
- BBC News
Wimbledon 2025: No line judges this year, but will they be missed?
Thomas Sweeney's first incentive to become a line judge was the offer of a free Pauline Eyre, who called the lines at Wimbledon for 16 years, some natty blazers and the chance to buy tickets for the tournament were the main recompense for work she had to take annual leave to the best officials might earn up to £200 a day plus line judging has never been about the money for those who spend hours leaning forward, hands resting on knees, staring intently at a line of chalk to determine in a split second on which side of it the yellow ball has so close to Jana Novotna on Centre Court that she could see her foot shaking on the first point of a Wimbledon final or being "psyched out" by John McEnroe were priceless experiences for then there were the outfits."There's nothing quite like walking out on to the iconic grass courts at SW19, wearing the uniform of what many consider the best-dressed officials in all of sport," Malgorzata Grzyb, chair of the Association of British Tennis Officials (ABTO), told BBC times have changed. Next week at Wimbledon there will be no line judges for the first time in its 148-year history, with electronic line calling being and umpires have already got used to the new set-up as it has been at other tournaments for a while, but on the green grass at Wimbledon, where advertising logos are muted and the players are dressed in white, the emptier courts may feel that bit more noticeable."It's all the tradition of Wimbledon – the people and the funny uniforms – and that's a bit of personality that's gone," said Eyre. "I think it's all of those little things that made Wimbledon Wimbledon."Traditionalists will miss them, but technology fans will point to Sport has been finding out what umpires, players and line judges make of the move. Challenges are 'out' "Mr Djokovic is challenging the call on the right baseline; the ball was called out."There was often a buzz of excitement when the umpire signalled there would be a video replay of a line judge's rhythmic clap-clap-clapping built up to the moment being shown on the big screen, and the obligatory "ooooooooh" followed when the split-second judgement of the human eye was laid bare to a packed arena and millions watching on than 14,000 pairs of eyes on Centre Court could bore into the line judge who had been wrong by less than the width of a blade of grass. But when the official was shown to be correct, their poker faces had to fight the urge to look even mildly year players can still ask for a replay on the screen, although fans' gasps will be over the depiction of a 'close call' rather than a verdict on human instinct versus technology. And, if recent tournaments are anything to go by, their laughs may be at the delayed reaction for some of the "out" Hawkins, inventor of the Hawk-Eye technology that was first introduced at Wimbledon in 2007, said the challenge system had probably "had its day" with fans."When it was new, there was certainly more excitement – people kind of got into it," he said."It got to the point where there was a little bit of a case of 'we've been there, we've had that joke, let's just get on with the tennis' and obviously doing away with the challenge system does mean you can get on with the game a bit quicker." Some line judges are still 'in' The absence of line judges now gives players fewer people to take out their frustrations on, with Eyre remembering being "yelled at" by players and being hit by many was disqualified from the 2020 US Open for accidentally hitting a ball at a line judge, while last year Andrey Rublev was defaulted in Dubai for screaming in the face of all of the 300 line judges who have been cut will be out of work at Wimbledon, with about 80 being used as 'match assistants' who are on hand in case the technology fails and will also undertake duties such as escorting players who need to leave the their opportunities to work at big tournaments are dwindling, with the French Open now the only one of the four Grand Slams not using electronic line men's ATP Tour and the combined ATP/WTA tournaments introduced the technology this year and WTA-only events are moving in that fears this could have an impact on the quality of umpiring in years to come since line judging is a pathway to becoming a chair umpire."Why would you go to call the lines at Finchley Tennis Club under-12s if you haven't got that carrot of 'maybe one day I can get to call lines at Wimbledon'?" said Eyre, who called the lines in 12 Wimbledon finals in the 1990s and 2000s and is now a comedian touring a show about her line judge Grzyb says the development pathway for officials has evolved and stressed that line judges are still used at many events below the top tier of tennis."Instead of starting solely as line umpires, new officials now receive training in both line and chair umpiring from the outset, enabling them to progress more rapidly to chair umpire roles," the ABTO chair said."[This] is not dissimilar to the systems in place in many countries without a home Grand Slam, and who have been able to produce world-class chair umpires." 'Out... I think' - You cannot be serious! Being a line judge usually means being able to stand for a long period of time and, crucially, bellow out the call in a way that makes it obvious what is British number one Jack Draper found out at Queen's, the automated calls cannot always be heard over a raucous point to take his semi-final to a decider was met with confusion as neither Draper nor the crowd were sure whether there had been an "out" players also no longer able to rely on the line judges' arm gestures to indicate if the ball is out, Eyre says the voices used at the grass-court tournament were not loud enough."They have used very calm voices - it sort of sounds like the voice isn't sure," she said."Sort of like it's saying 'out… I think'. It feels a bit awkward. That's very different psychologically, not hearing something sharp."And while some prefer the technology - Briton Heather Watson recently said a bad experience with line judges' calls at Birmingham "ruined the match" - others are Sonay Kartal said she struggled at the Australian Open as she could hear automated calls from the other courts, leading to confusion and even players stopping the point because they thought the call was on their is not yet known what the voices of the Wimbledon calls will sound like, with the tournament using the voices of some of its behind-the-scenes staff and tour guides. The All England Club will be using different voices on different courts to avoid confusion between neighbouring would have been great if the booming voice of McEnroe himself had been one of the voices, Eyre suggests."It would be fun to have McEnroe calling them, wouldn't it? We're all yelling at the telly going 'you cannot be serious!' - I'd like that, we could yell at him and that would be good karma!" Could umpires be next to go? First it was a pencil, paper and a stopwatch. Then came an electronic scoring system and next technology continues to develop, the need for human intervention what will go next? Chair umpires?Seven-time Grand Slam singles champion McEnroe, known for his on-court outbursts, has previously suggested getting rid of umpires and relying on the - he of the free sandwich - is now a chair umpire who oversaw the 2023 women's French Open has overseen numerous matches on Wimbledon's Centre Court and cannot imagine time being called on umpires in top-level tennis any time soon."There will always be that need to have a human to facilitate at the end of where technology has its limitations," Sweeney said."There are aspects to life that can't be prepared for, and you need that human to be able to absorb pressure, provide the opportunity for understanding and empathy for a player, and to be able to help, guide and govern how the court itself operates."But with nine fewer people on court during matches, Sweeney said it "can feel a bit lonely out there" after the "tradition of living the match together and encouraging each other to stay focused".Ball kids and match officials are still on hand to assist with tasks like fetching towels for players or facilitating bathroom breaks, while one review official monitors the line technology."We still have that team," said Sweeney. "Even with smaller numbers, we're still a very strong and supporting team of each other. It just looks a bit different."
The Herald Scotland
31 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
6 memorable times line judges and line calling took centre stage at Wimbledon
The decision has been met by a mixed reception, with some people believing it represents progress and brings Wimbledon into line with most other tournaments, while others have bemoaned a loss of tradition and the removal of roles within the sport. The AELTC has announced operational updates for next year's Championships, relating to the final weekend schedule and the use of Live Electronic Line Calling. Read more ⬇️ — Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) October 9, 2024 It should also mean no more rows between players and officials over line calls, which have provided some of the most famous moments in Wimbledon history. Here, the PA news agency looks back at the times when line judges and line calling took centre stage. John McEnroe – 1981 The most famous controversy of all spawned the quote that continues to follow McEnroe around more than 40 years later. In a first-round match against Tom Gullikson, a McEnroe serve on the centre line was met by an outstretched arm from the line judge. Umpire Edward James affirmed it was out, leading McEnroe to exclaim: 'You cannot be serious. That ball was on the line. Chalk flew up.' A six-minute hiatus followed where the American was given a point penalty for calling the official the 'pits of the world'. He went on to win the match and the tournament but his relationship with officialdom remained tempestuous. Jeff Tarango – 1995 Jeff Tarango prepared to leave the court in 1995 (PA) Another combustible American went one step further than McEnroe, defaulting himself by walking off court midway through a third-round match against Alexander Mronz. Tarango's ire was first sparked by a serve he thought was an ace being called out early in the second set. He went on to call umpire Bruno Rebeuh corrupt and, after being given a point penalty, stormed off trailing 7-6 3-1. Tarango's wife Benedicte also slapped Rebeuh across the face behind the scenes. Tarango was fined and suspended for his actions. Fabio Fognini – 2013 Dubbed the 'opera rant', Italian Fognini's reaction to a disputed line call in a first-round match against Jurgen Melzer in 2013 was a full-blown melodrama. When a shot to the baseline was called out, Fognini dropped his racket and collapsed prostrate to the grass before appealing to umpire Pascal Maria, who could barely contain his mirth, in the most dramatic of fashions. Nick Kyrgios – 2022 Nick Kyrgios called a line judge a "snitch" that "has no fans" 👀😬#Wimbledon #BBCTennis — BBC Sport (@BBCSport) June 28, 2022 Another serial offender when it comes to clashes with officials, Kyrgios complained about one line judge being a 'snitch' during a first-round match against Britain's Paul Jubb three years ago. As well as calling lines, the officials also kept an ear out for bad language from players, reporting what they heard to the umpire. That did not meet with approval from Kyrgios, who ranted to the umpire: 'Has one person today come to see her speak? You got fans, but she has got none. She just selfishly walks to you in the middle of a game because she's a snitch.' Greg Rusedski – 2003 A man in the crowd was the subject of British star Greg Rusedski's anger during a second-round match against Andy Roddick in 2003. The fan erroneously called a Roddick serve out and Rusedski, thinking the call had come from the line judge, left it. He lost his temper when the umpire refused to order the point to be replayed and was fined for his outburst. Dorothy Cavis-Brown – 1964 Arthur Sidey's award-winning photograph of line judge Dorothy Cavis-Brown fast asleep at the end of a match on Court No. 3 at Wimbledon in 1964. She dozed as the contest concluded and, to general laughter, as the players left the court — Historic Sports Pictures (@HistoricSports2) May 17, 2021 At match point in his first-round contest, Abe Segal moved to the net to shake hands after Clark Graebner hit a shot well wide. But no call came. All eyes turned to line judge Cavis-Brown, who was slumped fast asleep in her chair. Laughter rippled through the crowd as a ball boy tried and failed to rouse her. The match followed the officials' cocktail party, which swiftly became a thing of the past.
The Herald Scotland
31 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Britain's leading trio have more on the line than just pride at Wimbledon
And, unlike in previous generations, when competition on the court often resulted in strained relations off it, Katie Boulter, Emma Raducanu and Sonay Kartal are proving that rivalry really can be friendly. After two years as the British number one, Boulter was replaced at the top of the domestic tree earlier this month by Raducanu, the woman she had previously usurped. Going into Eastbourne this week, Raducanu led Boulter by just a handful of points, while Kartal is the newcomer on the block, with her ranking having climbed almost 250 places in a year to 49. 'It's really nice to see the state of British tennis getting better and better every single year,' said Boulter. 'I feel like I'm extremely happy to see great people doing really good things.' On being overtaken by Raducanu, the 28-year-old added: 'Of course, I personally want to be getting my ranking moving in the right direction. I'm very happy for her to be British number one. But, at the same time, it's going to be fun for me to chase her now.' In contrast to her record-breaking emergence at the top of the sport four years ago, Raducanu has been making steady progress since returning at the start of last year from surgery on both wrists and one ankle. Physical frailties remain, and an ongoing issue with a back spasm prompted her to pull out of last week's tournament in Berlin, ending her hopes of a Wimbledon seeding. Raducanu has shown she can pull off big results, twice beating top-10 players on grass last season, but she has the most points to defend having made the fourth round at Wimbledon last year. 'I think having Katie in front, it was nice for me to have something to chase,' said the 22-year-old, who played doubles with Boulter at Queen's Club. 'Now I'm sure she's going to enjoy that with me. We have a healthy competition between us two. I want to see her do well, she wants to see me do well.' Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal embrace following a match in Nottingham (Bradley Collyer/PA) Arriving quickly in the rear-view mirror, meanwhile, is Kartal, who has not looked back since reaching the third round of Wimbledon as a qualifier last year, making it three British women in the top 50. The 23-year-old, a former junior rival of Raducanu, also made an impressive debut in the Billie Jean King Cup this year, and Anne Keothavong's side will head to the finals in Shenzhen in September looking to better last year's semi-final run. 'We're all very close and spend a lot of time together when we're at home training,' said Kartal of the triumvirate. 'To have us three all together, I think maybe sometimes it is in the back of our heads but I think that's a good mentality, it makes us push harder in training since you know you've got two of your team-mates that are trying to do the same thing. Mimi Xu is going to Wimbledon! 🏴 — Tennis Wales (@tenniswales) June 18, 2025 'I think it's really good for us to have that rivalry and it's really good for the sport as well. I think we're in a really good place for women's tennis.' While there is currently a gap after Kartal, Wimbledon is a chance for another exciting trio to start making names for themselves. Mimi Xu, 17, and 16-year-olds Hannah Klugman and Mika Stojsavljevic have all been given wild cards for the women's singles for the first time after success in the junior game. Boulter believes having sparring partners at an early age can accelerate their progress, saying: 'I don't feel like I necessarily had that many people around me when I was coming through so I'm a little bit jealous of them having people to push them constantly. 'I'm looking forward to watching them and seeing them all grow.'
