Barbora Krejcikova, a past victor at Wimbledon, mounted a comeback to secure her spot in the Korea Open quarter-finals, as Emma Raducanu failed to capitalize on three match-point opportunities.
Raducanu, Britain’s leading female player, will likely reflect on the squandered chance following her defeat in two hours and 52 minutes, with the scoreline reading 4-6, 7-6 (12-10), 6-1.
Raducanu had the chance to close out the match while serving at 5-3 in the second set, having previously held a 4-1 advantage, and even had a match point during that game.
However, Krejcikova managed to break back against Raducanu, pushing the set into a tie-break – a phase that initially appeared to be dominated by Raducanu.
After surging to a 5-2 lead, Raducanu found herself with two match points on Krejcikova’s serve, but she was unable to convert, and the former world number two remained resilient, forcing a deciding set.
Krejcikova, currently ranked 39th globally, fended off two break points in the third game of the final set before winning five consecutive games, thereby clinching the victory.
The Czech player is now set to compete against Iga Swiatek of Poland, the world number two, in the quarter-finals.
Earlier on Thursday, Swiatek, the top seed and current Wimbledon champion, secured a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Sorana Cirstea of Romania.
