‘She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard' – Aryna Sabalenka praise for beaten Emma Raducanu
The first set alone took 74 minutes, with Raducanu saving seven set points and creating one of her own, while she led 4-1 in the second before Sabalenka recovered to set up a fourth-round clash with Elise Mertens.
Raducanu will now drop to British number three behind Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal, who is the last home woman left in singles, but that will not be the case for long if she can maintain this level.
The former US Open champion has made it her goal to close the gap to the world's best and, having lost twice heavily to Iga Swiatek in the other two grand slams this year, she can feel very differently after her performance here.
'She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard to get this win,' said Sabalenka. 'I fight for every point like crazy.
'I'm super happy to see her healthy and back on track. I'm pretty sure that she will be back in the top 10 soon.
'What an atmosphere, my ears are still hurting. I was telling myself, just pretend they're cheering for you, and I was having goosebumps.'
Unlike Jack Draper, Raducanu is naturally at home on grass, with her exceptional ability to take the ball early, particularly on return, mitigating her lack of pure power.
She gave Sabalenka a decent run for her money in their only previous meeting, in Indian Wells last spring, and a clean return winner off a second serve in the opening game showed the Belarusian that she very much meant business.
Raducanu played an almost flawless match to beat former champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second round and, although this was a very different prospect, the 22-year-old once more appeared calm and clear-minded.
She had the top seed under pressure again in the fifth game, bringing up three more break points and taking the third when Sabalenka netted a backhand.
That was greeted by a huge roar from the packed stands, but Raducanu then made her first missteps serving at 4-3 to hand the advantage back amid a run of eight points in a row for Sabalenka.
A forehand winner played from virtually sitting down by Raducanu earned a clap from Sabalenka but too many errors had crept into the home favourite's game and a netted forehand gave her opponent a first set point.
She saved that with an ace, and Sabalenka remarkably missed backhands on every one of six more opportunities before Raducanu finally held in one of Centre Court's more memorable games.
It seemed impossible for it not to be a key moment, and Sabalenka had a face of thunder after watching two Raducanu passing shots fly beyond her reach.
Concern replaced cheers when Raducanu suffered a nasty slip in retrieving a short ball, briefly staying down clutching her left hip before gingerly getting to her feet.
It did not stop her creating two break points, though, and Sabalenka overhit a backhand to leave her opponent serving for the set.
This time Sabalenka did not let Raducanu off the hook, forcing a tie-break, where a drive volley hooked wide of an open court at 5-4 looked like it might have cost the world number one when she then netted a return to give Raducanu a first set point.
But Sabalenka saved it in style with a drop shot before finally taking her eighth opportunity, this time making no mistake at the net.
It was important for Raducanu to recover from the disappointment quickly, and she did, producing two strong holds of serve and taking advantage of a dip from Sabalenka to move 4-1 ahead in the second set.
Sabalenka has been far and away the best player in the world over the last year but suddenly she was struggling to live with Raducanu, who played a series of sublime points to create a chance to win a fourth game in a row only to just miss with a forehand.
Had she taken it, a deciding set was most certainly on the cards, but Sabalenka, who is the only top-six seed left in the tournament, barged the door wide open and charged through it, reeling off five games in a row.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Daily Mirror
3 hours ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Family silverware: Incredible story of Markham family and their minor miracle
TOM Markham is making his way up the steps of the Cusack Stand. The two-year-old has just escaped from a photo with his grandad Tom Markham and his dad Tom Markham and the Tom Markham Cup — all pictured together for the very first time. 'It's a special moment for us,' says grandad Tom (or Tom III) as he heads after the youngest. This is the story of five Tom Markhams and a trophy that's played for the Electric Ireland GAA Football All-Ireland Minor Championship every year. The first was as a gun-runner and spy for Michael Collins, the second played for the Dublin minors for five years, the third played with some of the biggest names in Irish sport, the fourth works with some of the biggest names in soccer, film and video games. The fifth? Well, he's just getting going… But let's start with the trophy. On Sunday Kerry and Tyrone meet in Newbridge in the 2025 minor decider. The winner will collect the Tom Markham Cup. It has passed through some famous hands — from future All Stars to TV presenters and movie stars with everyone from Sean Cavanagh and David Clifford to Paddy Kielty lifting it down the years. Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe was even pictured with the cup after partying with the 2012 victorious Dublin minor team. But there was little contact between the Markham family and the trophy for decades. 'I was invited to the Roscommon celebration dinner in 2006,' says Tom III. 'And that happened by accident really. I just happened to meet a Roscommon man on a building site and he contacted the Roscommon PRO. 'It was an amazing night. They put myself and my wife Deirdre at a table with the only living survivors from the last Roscommon minor team that won the All-Ireland in the early 1950s. 'These men were all in their 80s by then and they were seriously emotional. They were all wearing their medals pinned to their lapels and it was such a memorable night. 'That was what sparked me to start finding out a bit more about my grandfather.' The first Tom Markham was born in Ballynacally near Ennis in 1878. In a 2020 lecture for Clare County Library, the writer Joe Ó Muircheartaigh described his colourful life and times: 'He was a British civil servant, but an Irish Volunteer and an IRA man. A gun runner, a veteran of Easter Week, a social activist, a champion of the sick during a global pandemic, an Irish language activist, a youth worker, a newspaper editor and a writer.' Tom Markham I was in Croke Park with the Dublin team on Bloody Sunday and set up GAA clubs in the city. He also worked in Dublin Castle and became one of Collins' key intelligence men during the War of Independence. 'My grandfather died 13 years before I was born, but I'm immensely proud of him,' says Tom III. 'I think it was an extraordinary era to be living through. 'My dad was quite a quiet man and there is only one story from that whole era that he ever mentioned to me. 'My grandad was bringing my father home from school and they came to a British checkpoint somewhere near Ballybough. 'My grandfather actually had a pistol on him and it wouldn't have been an option to turn around or whatever. So he slipped the pistol into my dad's school bag. 'They searched him, but they never searched the school bag. 'The hair is standing up on my neck thinking about that and how people lived on their wits. It's extraordinary. 'Imagine the pressure of dealing with that on a day-to-day basis if you were involved.' Tom Markham I was the chairman of the Dublin Minor Board and founded the Desmonds and Crokes clubs. He died in 1939 and the Tom Markham Cup was presented to the All-Ireland minor football winners for the first time the following year. By this point, the second Tom Markham had already carved out his own little piece of history by playing minor football for the Dubs for five consecutive years from 1929 to 1933. He also played in a match at Croke Park in the 1930s to raise funds for 1916 veterans and the medal from that game is something Tom III holds dear. 'An old boy came up to me at his funeral and said, 'Do you know your father at 13 used to take the 50s with an old leather ball and could put them over the bar,' says Tom III. 'I just couldn't believe that. 'There's a great photo in Humphrey Kelleher's book 'GAA Family Silver' of the Dublin minor team in 1930. My dad is in the front and my grandfather is in the back.' As a kid, the third Tom Markham was brought to Croke Park and knew about the cup and the connection, but went to rugby playing schools in Cork and Dublin and amazingly never played GAA. Instead, Tom III played rugby for Clontarf alongside Dublin GAA legends David Hickey and Brian Mullins and with Brian O'Driscoll's dad Frank before lining out with former Ireland captain Ciaran Fitzgerald on the Army team. 'I played with Dave (Hickey) in UCD and in Clontarf. He was unbelievable,' he says. 'He would run flat at somebody and they would just bounce off him. He was so strong. 'I lived on St Lawrence Road and Brian Mullins lived on the next road. We played soccer together in one of the street leagues where the two streets combined. 'He was playing centre-half and he was about two years younger than me, but he was more than holding his own with the older kids. 'In the air he took everything out and he was a talented rugby player too.' Tom III ended up playing rugby for Athlone and was selected for Connacht, only for injury to deprive him of the chance to play. But he got to play alongside Triple Crown-winning captain Fitzgerald during their time together in the Army. 'His ability to motivate players was exceptional. He seemed to be able to get into people's heads,' he says. When the fourth Tom Markham was due in 1982, Tom III and his wife Deirdre discussed the topic of names. There was an obvious choice, but he wasn't convinced. 'I remember saying, 'You know, maybe we've had enough of all this Tom Markham stuff. Maybe we should call him something else,' he says. 'Deirdre obviously mentioned that to her mum and I got a phone call about two or three days later saying, 'Tom, it's not for me to say, but this is a very important family name and I think he should be called Tom.' 'So it was probably my mother-in-law who was the biggest driving force.' And along came the fourth Tom Markham. He's a huge Arsenal fan — there's a family connection on his mother Deirdre's side through her uncle Billy Duffy who was at the club in the 1940s — and he lives in the grounds of the old Highbury Stadium. After working for a bank in Dublin, he did a PhD in football finance and has become one of the most respected figures in the business side of the beautiful game, brokering deals between major clubs and prospective owners. Tom IV even had a spell as CEO of Wigan Athletic. He was also head of strategic business development at the company behind the Football Manager video game and more recently has been producing hit documentaries about Brazilian footballers — Kaiser in 2018 and The Phenomenon, the story of Ronaldo in 2022. 'He heard this story about a footballer in Brazil who had a long career without ever playing a game,' says Tom III. 'Tom actually went into the favelas and found him and got him to agree to tell his life story for Kaiser. 'Then he was involved in a film about Ronaldo. We went to the premiere in Madrid and that was a great night. (Carlo) Ancelotti was there and quite a few other big names.' Tom III served in Lebanon with the UN in the 1980s before setting up his own business as an engineer. He's still working, but his current job for Ballyboughal GAA club might be his last before retirement. That will leave more time for researching his grandfather Tom I and for trips to London to see his grandson Tom V. The fifth Tom Markham covered the back seat of the car with his breakfast on arrival at Croke Park, but then he wouldn't be the first to have a jittery stomach before taking to the famous field. Thankfully his dad, Tom IV, had a change of clothes at the ready. On the side of the pitch the famous cup has caught the eye of Tom V. It's gleaming in the morning sunlight after a fresh lick of polish. Maybe he'll be back to pick it up again one day as a player... 'That really would be something,' says Tom III, laughing. 'We might need Tom (IV) and his wife Eleanor to move back from London for that to happen. But you never know.' With his name, anything is possible.
Irish Independent
7 hours ago
- Irish Independent
‘She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard' – Aryna Sabalenka praise for beaten Emma Raducanu
The 22-year-old played some electrifying tennis under the roof on Centre Court but was unable to apply the finishing touches, eventually going down 7-6 (6) 6-4 after exactly two hours. The first set alone took 74 minutes, with Raducanu saving seven set points and creating one of her own, while she led 4-1 in the second before Sabalenka recovered to set up a fourth-round clash with Elise Mertens. Raducanu will now drop to British number three behind Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal, who is the last home woman left in singles, but that will not be the case for long if she can maintain this level. The former US Open champion has made it her goal to close the gap to the world's best and, having lost twice heavily to Iga Swiatek in the other two grand slams this year, she can feel very differently after her performance here. 'She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard to get this win,' said Sabalenka. 'I fight for every point like crazy. 'I'm super happy to see her healthy and back on track. I'm pretty sure that she will be back in the top 10 soon. 'What an atmosphere, my ears are still hurting. I was telling myself, just pretend they're cheering for you, and I was having goosebumps.' Unlike Jack Draper, Raducanu is naturally at home on grass, with her exceptional ability to take the ball early, particularly on return, mitigating her lack of pure power. She gave Sabalenka a decent run for her money in their only previous meeting, in Indian Wells last spring, and a clean return winner off a second serve in the opening game showed the Belarusian that she very much meant business. Raducanu played an almost flawless match to beat former champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second round and, although this was a very different prospect, the 22-year-old once more appeared calm and clear-minded. She had the top seed under pressure again in the fifth game, bringing up three more break points and taking the third when Sabalenka netted a backhand. That was greeted by a huge roar from the packed stands, but Raducanu then made her first missteps serving at 4-3 to hand the advantage back amid a run of eight points in a row for Sabalenka. A forehand winner played from virtually sitting down by Raducanu earned a clap from Sabalenka but too many errors had crept into the home favourite's game and a netted forehand gave her opponent a first set point. She saved that with an ace, and Sabalenka remarkably missed backhands on every one of six more opportunities before Raducanu finally held in one of Centre Court's more memorable games. It seemed impossible for it not to be a key moment, and Sabalenka had a face of thunder after watching two Raducanu passing shots fly beyond her reach. Concern replaced cheers when Raducanu suffered a nasty slip in retrieving a short ball, briefly staying down clutching her left hip before gingerly getting to her feet. It did not stop her creating two break points, though, and Sabalenka overhit a backhand to leave her opponent serving for the set. This time Sabalenka did not let Raducanu off the hook, forcing a tie-break, where a drive volley hooked wide of an open court at 5-4 looked like it might have cost the world number one when she then netted a return to give Raducanu a first set point. But Sabalenka saved it in style with a drop shot before finally taking her eighth opportunity, this time making no mistake at the net. It was important for Raducanu to recover from the disappointment quickly, and she did, producing two strong holds of serve and taking advantage of a dip from Sabalenka to move 4-1 ahead in the second set. Sabalenka has been far and away the best player in the world over the last year but suddenly she was struggling to live with Raducanu, who played a series of sublime points to create a chance to win a fourth game in a row only to just miss with a forehand. Had she taken it, a deciding set was most certainly on the cards, but Sabalenka, who is the only top-six seed left in the tournament, barged the door wide open and charged through it, reeling off five games in a row.
Irish Examiner
7 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Emma Raducanu goes down swinging in thrilling loss to Aryna Sabalenka
Emma Raducanu reminded the tennis world what a special talent she is before her Wimbledon hopes were ended with a narrow loss to world number one Aryna Sabalenka. The 22-year-old played some electrifying tennis under the roof on Centre Court but was unable to apply the finishing touches, eventually going down 7-6 (6) 6-4 after exactly two hours. The first set alone took 74 minutes, with Raducanu saving seven set points and creating one of her own, while she led 4-1 in the second before Sabalenka recovered to set up a fourth-round clash with Elise Mertens. Raducanu will now drop to British number three behind Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal, who is the last home woman left in singles, but that will not be the case for long if she can maintain this level. The former US Open champion has made it her goal to close the gap to the world's best and, having lost twice heavily to Iga Swiatek in the other two grand slams this year, she can feel very differently after her performance here. 'She played such incredible tennis and she pushed me really hard to get this win,' said Sabalenka. 'I fight for every point like crazy. 'What an atmosphere, my ears are still hurting. I was telling myself, just pretend they're cheering for you, and I was having goosebumps.' Unlike Jack Draper, Raducanu is naturally at home on grass, with her exceptional ability to take the ball early, particularly on return, mitigating her lack of pure power. She gave Sabalenka a decent run for her money in their only previous meeting, in Indian Wells last spring, and a clean return winner off a second serve in the opening game showed the Belarusian that she very much meant business. Raducanu played an almost flawless match to beat former champion Marketa Vondrousova in the second round and, although this was a very different prospect, the 22-year-old once more appeared calm and clear-minded. She had the top seed under pressure again in the fifth game, bringing up three more break points and taking the third when Sabalenka netted a backhand. That was greeted by a huge roar from the packed stands, but Raducanu then made her first missteps serving at 4-3 to hand the advantage back amid a run of eight points in a row for Sabalenka. A forehand winner played from virtually sitting down by Raducanu earned a clap from Sabalenka but too many errors had crept into the home favourite's game and a netted forehand gave her opponent a first set point. She saved that with an ace, and Sabalenka remarkably missed backhands on every one of six more opportunities before Raducanu finally held in one of Centre Court's more memorable games. It seemed impossible for it not to be a key moment, and Sabalenka had a face of thunder after watching two Raducanu passing shots fly beyond her reach. Concern replaced cheers when Raducanu suffered a nasty slip in retrieving a short ball, briefly staying down clutching her left hip before gingerly getting to her feet. It did not stop her creating two break points, though, and Sabalenka overhit a backhand to leave her opponent serving for the set. This time Sabalenka did not let Raducanu off the hook, forcing a tie-break, where a drive volley hooked wide of an open court at 5-4 looked like it might have cost the world number one when she then netted a return to give Raducanu a first set point. But Sabalenka saved it in style with a drop shot before finally taking her eighth opportunity, this time making no mistake at the net. It was important for Raducanu to recover from the disappointment quickly, and she did, producing two strong holds of serve and taking advantage of a dip from Sabalenka to move 4-1 ahead in the second set. Sabalenka has been far and away the best player in the world over the last year but suddenly she was struggling to live with Raducanu, who played a series of sublime points to create a chance to win a fourth game in a row only to just miss with a forehand. Had she taken it, a deciding set was most certainly on the cards, but Sabalenka, who is the only top-six seed left in the tournament, barged the door wide open and charged through it, reeling off five games in a row.
