Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu – Second Round – Preview & Prediction | 2022 Australian Open
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THE FACTS
When is Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu on and what time does it start? Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu will take place on Thursday 20th January, 2022 – not before 08:00 (UK)
Where is Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu taking place? Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu will take place at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Australia
What surface is Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu being played on? Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu will take place on an outdoor hard court
Where can I get tickets for Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu? Visit this link for the latest ticket information for Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu
What channel is Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu on in the UK? Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu will be televised live on Eurosport
Where can I stream Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu in the UK? Eurosport subscribers can stream Danka Kovinic vs Emma Raducanu live on their website, while Sky Sports subscribers can stream the match live on Sky Go
THE LOWDOWN
DANKA KOVINIC
World number 98 Danka Kovinic overcame South Korean qualifier Su Jeong Jang on Tuesday to reach the second round of the Australian Open for only the third time. The 27-year-old has never made it past this stage of a Grand Slam, with six second round exits in total across the Australian Open, Roland-Garros and the US Open.
EMMA RADUCANU
19-year-old Emma Raducanu will set a new career-high WTA world ranking of 12th no matter the outcome of her second round match after a vastly entertaining battle with Sloane Stephens. The reigning US Open champion took out the 2017 US Open champion 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 in a scoreline that does not do the quality justice, with Stephens slow to start, dominating the middle and then being out-worked in the third by Raducanu’s uber-aggressive playstyle. The teenager contracted covid-19 over the winter break which hampered her warm-up schedule but a first win since late October should so her confidence the world of good.
THE PREDICTION
US Open champion Emma Raducanu took to court in an entirely different way to how we have seen over the last few months and within 17 minutes she had taken the first set 6-0 against former US Open champion Sloane Stephens and with it blasted away any notion of her frailty. The 19-year-old could take years getting back to the heights of her miracle run to a Grand Slam title as a debut qualifier last September or she could replicate it here, with such a small sample size of her tour matches to go on we must simply watch her do it. The world number 18 has some new feats, though, with Stephens her first three-set victory at a Grand Slam and her first victory over a Grand Slam champion after her relatively inexperienced draw at the US Open. Despite the American’s inconsistency over the years there is little doubt that Sloane Stephens is also the most talented player Raducanu has ever beaten.
A second round meeting with world number 98 Danka Kovinic will need recalibrating for after the heights of beating Stephens but Margaret Court Arena will be pulling in one direction only. If Raducanu plays like she did on Tuesday she can win in straight sets here in much the same fashion she blasted through week one of the US Open.
