US Open champion Emma Raducanu lost her first match as a Grand Slam champion, beaten in straight sets by Belarus’ Aliaksandra Sasnovich at Indian Wells.
Raducanu, currently ranked 22nd, was seeking an 11th successive victory, having won the US Open last month as a qualifier nut 100th-ranked Sasnovich had other ideas as she beat the 18-year-old Raducanu 6-2 6-4 in round two of the BNP Paribas Open.
Raducanu’s next assignment is to play at the Kremlin Cup in Moscow in 10 days’ time.
The Briton was competing without a permanent coach, having ended her partnership with Andrew Richardson, whom she has known since she was 10 years old, after her US Open success.
PHOTO/COURTESY
