‘The target is off my back!’ Emma Raducanu sees positive from US Open defeat

Emma Raducanu was keen to stress the positives after her US Open defence fell at the first hurdle as she suffered a straight sets defeat against Alize Cornet.

A year on from her astonishing breakthrough success, it was a different story altogether for the British teenager who arrived at Flushing Meadows with the spotlight firmly fixed on her.

The 19-year-old was handed the toughest possible first round opponent in the shape of Cornet and the wily Frenchwoman used all of her experience to navigate her way to a 6-3 6-3 victory.

As a consequence, Raducanu, who was affected by the blisters that hampered her emotional practice session on Friday, will drop to 80 in the world rankings which she claimed will offer a semblance of relief.

She said: ‘Obviously it’s really disappointing, I’m really sad to leave here. It’s probably my favourite tournament.

‘But also in a way I’m happy because it’s a clean slate. I’m going to drop down the rankings. Climb my way back up. The target will be off my back slightly.

‘I’ve been doing some really good work in the last six weeks especially. I’m just looking forward to putting more of those weeks together consistently, then we’ll see what happens.

‘With perspective, actually as a 19-year-old, I’ve had not a bad year. To be top 100, if you told me that a year ago, I’d take it.’

Relegated to Louis Armstrong Court with Naomi Osaka given the primetime evening slot on Arthur Ashe, Raducanu struggled to deal with the blustery conditions which badly affected her serve.

Raducanu took confidence last year from a good run of results prior to arriving in New York and had the freedom to swing freely but this season has been difficult, with niggling injuries and wins hard to come by. The assuredness that marked