As Emma Raducanu lined up to compete in the Australian Open for the first time as a professional, reminders of her inexperience were ever present. Despite being a grand slam champion, the encounter with Sloane Stephens marked her first match against a grand slam champion. In the end she was forced to play three sets for only the third time in her career at the top level.

It took a gripping hour and 45 minutes filled with tense, attritional exchanges but Raducanu withstood a second-set barrage from the 2017 US Open champion in a turbulent match to win 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 and reach the second round. Read More