Qatar Open: Emma Raducanu defeated in first round by Ekaterina Alexandrova
Emma Raducanu lost for the fourth straight time in her career as she was driven by Ekaterina in the first round of the Qatar Open Alexandrova) defeated.
Russia’s Alexandrova won 6-3 7-5 on Sunday, with Britain ranked second.
Raducanu won a card game in Doha, the first WTA 1000 event of the year.
Alexandrova will next face the top seed and world number one Aryna Sabalenka.
Raducana is ranked 60th in the world and he has performed well against Alexandrova.
But Alessandrova, who won the WTA Tour in Linz, Austria last week, was able to take advantage of Raducanu’s failure to earn a second serve and win five straight points.
Alexandrova, 30, dropped slightly in the early stages of the second set, which gave Raducana another lead, but World 26 won the 5-5 win Important breakthrough and then got the game.
Raducanu joins Doha’s mentor Jane O’Donoghue, who flew out of her support for the 2021 U.S. Open champion.
