Emma Raducanu ‘really proud’ after beating ‘top player’ Maria Sakkari in first round of Dubai Tennis Championships

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Emma Raducanu earned a morale-boosting win over Maria Sakkari in Dubai, powering past the Greek in straight sets. The 21-year-old looked in fine form after what has been a difficult period for the 2021 US Open champion, twice breaking back against the former world No. 3. Raducanu has now won all three of her meetings with Sakkari, and follows a second-round defeat to Iga Swiatek in Doha.

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - FEBRUARY 16: Emma Raducanu of Great Britain reacts to converting match point against Maria Sakkari of Greece during the first round on Day One of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, part of the Hologic WTA Tour at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium on February 16, 2025 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images)

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Emma Raducanu was delighted by her powers of recovery, as she claimed a straight-sets win over Maria Sakkari in the first round of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Raducanu advanced to the second round with a comprehensive 6-4 6-2 victory, getting the job done in one hour and 20 minutes.

It was a welcome result for Raducanu, who snapped a four-match losing streak which began with a third-round defeat to Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open.

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She was subsequently eliminated at the first hurdle in Doha, Abu Dhabi and Singapore, losing to Ekaterina Alexandrova, 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova and Cristina Bucsa respectively.

The Brit will now face 2023 French Open finalist Karolina Muchova in the second round, and spoke about the resilience she needed to break back twice against the former world No. 3.

"I just tried to stay really focussed on the point in front of me," she said in her post-match interview.

"I think there were some momentum shifts throughout the match and when I got broken twice early in the sets, I just regrouped really well and broke back both times.

"I was really pleased with how I fought and competed against Maria; she's a top player, she's been as high as three in the world, so I'm just really proud of my performance."

This win continued a 100% winning record for the Brit against Sakkari, following a third-round win over the Greek at Wimbledon last year and victory at the 2021 US Open semi-finals – on route to her stunning Grand Slam triumph.

When asked about what she enjoys most from playing against Sakkari, she replied: "It's a difficult one; I think in a way, we play quite similar – she's really athletic.

"I'm not going to give all my tactics away, but it's just a very difficult match every time we play, so I'm happy to have won on these occasions in all big tournaments. So, just very happy to get through to this next round.

"The support has been great tonight. I really like the surface; it's my first time spending a bit of time here and I've really enjoyed it."

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