Emma Raducanu was knocked out of the Miami Open by Canada’s Bianca Andreescu after an absorbing first-round match where both players showed glimpses of their huge potential.
The British number one, 20, lost 6-3 3-6 6-2 against 22-year-old Andreescu, who also won the US Open as a teenager.
Both players have been beset by injury but produced a hard-fought match where a single break won the first two sets.
The decider was initially tight before Andreescu won the last four games.
“You never know what you’re going to expect, I just wanted to play my best with what I had and I think I did that,” said Andreescu, who plays Greek seventh seed Maria Sakkari next.
“Emma played amazing and is an incredible player. I have a lot of respect for her and her results show how good she is.”
In the men’s draw, fellow Britons Andy Murray and Kyle Edmund both also suffered opening round defeats.
Raducanu, ranked 72nd in the world, enjoyed a productive week in Indian Wells before moving on to Miami, having reached the last 16 in the Californian desert despite her preparation being hampered by a bout of tonsillitis and the recurrence of a wrist injury.
While her build-up in Florida was more conventional, landing a first-round opponent with the calibre of former world number four Andreescu was a tough draw.
The parallels between the pair are clear – primarily being teenage US Open champions who have been beset by injuries since, but also born in the same part of Canada with Romanian heritage.
And so it teed up an intriguing contest between two exciting players who reminded everyone of their considerable talent in an enjoyable encounter.
Raducanu, who won the New York title as a qualifier in 2021, was broken in her first service game of the match when she pushed a forehand wide and 31st-ranked Andreescu moved 2-0 ahead with what proved to be a critical break in the opening set.
Former Miami finalist Andreescu continued to apply pressure on Raducanu’s serve while dominating on her own, retaining composure to seal an opener which she had long controlled after the Briton had seen off three other set points.
Raducanu’s unforced errors had far outweighed her winners but she found her rhythm in the second set, looking comfortable on serve and returning with more quality.
As the Briton moved 4-3 ahead with the set still on serve, her belief continued to grow.
She cranked up the pressure in a gripping eighth game lasting 21 minutes, Andreescu showing incredible resistance and resilience to save six break points, but eventually buckling and enabling Raducanu to take the match into a decider.
Both players took a long break before the third set – an indication of their mental and physical exertions – and the encounter resumed at the same intensity.
Raducanu was unable to break Andreescu’s serve from 0-40 in the opening game and that proved crucial as the 2019 US Open champion quickly turned what was a delicately-poised battle in her favour.
Heavy coughing leads to injury for Swiatek
Meanwhile, defending women’s champion Every Swiatek has pulled out of the tournament with a rib injury.
Poland’s world number one Swiatek, 21, says the injury was caused by heavy coughing from an infection and she will also miss her nation’s tie against Kazakhstan in the Billie Jean King Cup on 14-15 April.
“Unfortunately, I’m still feeling a lot of discomfort and pain and I can’t compete,” said the reigning French Open and US Open champion.
“I will keep you updated about where I play next, because it depends on my process of recovering and the recommendation of my medical team.
“It’s a truly difficult call to not play in Miami and BJK Cup, but health is the most important.”