Emma Raducanu urges Wimbledon to 'fix' major issue
Emma Raducanu’s Wimbledon run was ended by Aryna Sabalenka (Picture: Shutterstock)
An emotional Emma Raducanu was dismayed by some ‘very wrong’ calls from Hawk-Eye following her Wimbledon exit at the hands of tournament favourite Aryna Sabalenka.
Raducanu produced a brave, at times brilliant performance against world number one Sabalenka but ultimately fell short as she exited her home Grand Slam in the third round.
The British number one remarkably saved seven set points in a tight opener before breaking Sabalenka herself to open up a chance to take a crucial lead.
Serving for the set, Raducanu trailed 40-0 and could not recover as Sabalenka broke back to force a tie-break in front of a captivated Centre Court crowd.
It was Sabalenka’s turn to save a set point in the tie-break and the three-time Grand Slam champion then went on to take the set.
The second set proved to be another tightly-contested affair but Sabalenka broke Raducanu at a crucial point before serving out the match and booking her place in the fourth round.
Raducanu was visibly surprised Hawk-Eye did not award her a point at one stage of the match and the 22-year-old was still adamant the ball was out when she addressed the media in her press conference.
Raducanu was critical of some of Hawk-Eye’s calls during the game (Picture: Getty)
Electronic Line Calling was introduced for this year’s Championships to replace traditional line judges and while Raducanu was mostly happy with the technology, she said it was ‘disappointing’ that mistakes were still being made.
World No. 1 Sabalenka will face Elise Mertens in the next round (Picture: Getty)
Asked about an incident in which she approached the chair umpire, so adamant was she that the wrong call was made, Raducanu said: ‘Yeah, I mean, that call was like, for sure out.
‘It’s kind of disappointing, the tournament here, that the calls can be so wrong, but for the most part they’ve been okay.
‘It’s just like, I’ve had a few in my other matches, too, that have been very wrong. So yeah, I don’t know. Hopefully they can kind of fix that.’
Narrow Sabalenka defeat should 'inspire' Raducanu
‘Emma Raducanu was a millimetre away from winning that match. So much of that was decided in the first set and it was really close in the second as well.
‘It was so positive and I hope she comes away from it gutted of course, because she lost, but inspired too.
‘She should feel how close she is to the top of the women’s game, how close she is to getting there and motivated to putting that extra work in to being up there for the next Grand Slam, which just happens to be the one she has won.’
Raducanu understandably looked emotional in her press conference but insisted she would try to find some ‘pride’ in the way she played.
The British tennis star has largely struggled since her incredible victory at the US Open in 2021 but showed promising signs this week at the All England Club.
Raducanu thumped former Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova in the previous round and certainly rattled Sabalenka before the experienced champion came through.
‘I think it’s difficult to see that right now, having just come off,’ she said. ‘It’s hard. It’s hard to take a loss like that.
‘At the same time, I’m playing Aryna, who is No. 1 in the world, a great champion. I have to be proud of my effort today.
‘It does give me confidence because I think the problem before was that I felt like I was gulfs away from the very top.
‘Having a match like that where I had chances in both sets, it does give me confidence. At the same time, it’s very difficult to take right now.
‘Right now it’s so soon after the match. I think it’s better for me to kind of feel a bit of the pain right now and then process it better that way.’
While Raducanu heads home, Sabalenka’s quest for a maiden Wimbledon title will continue against Elise Mertens on Sunday.
