Joint Secures First Grass-Court Quarterfinal Berth

EASTBOURNE: Emma Raducanu’s Wimbledon aspirations experienced a setback following a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6(4) loss to Australian competitor Maya Joint in the second round of the Eastbourne Open at Centre Court on Wednesday.

Raducanu, who recently regained the British number-one ranking, appears to be still seeking the form that propelled her to prominence in 2021.

Despite her current form, the 22-year-old remains her nation’s primary hope at Wimbledon.

Raducanu secured a victory against American Ann Li in the prior round, but concerns lingered regarding the back issue that caused her withdrawal from the Berlin Open the previous week.

The former US Open champion recovered from a 5-2 deficit in the final set, forcing a tie-break.

However, she couldn’t replicate her comeback success for a second consecutive day.

Both players exchanged breaks twice in a hard-fought first set, which Raducanu ultimately won.

The Australian decisively won the second set, having previously been defeated by the British player at the Italian Open in May.

Joint initially dominated the deciding set, but Raducanu rallied from 5-2 to force a tiebreaker. Joint ultimately prevailed, advancing to her first career grass-court quarterfinal.

Reflecting on her triumph, Joint acknowledged the match’s difficulty but expressed satisfaction in securing the victory.

Post-Match Comments

“Today was really tough. There were a lot of up and downs, a lot of momentum switches, but I’m really glad I was able to tough it out in the end,” Joint stated.

“I definitely remember that match [in Rome], it was a fun match to play, so I was looking forward to today.

“It was a bit different because today’s on grass. We both had to change our game’s a little bit. I’m really glad I was able to win this one.”