Emma Raducanu leads British charge at Australian Open
Emma Raducanu swept past fellow former US Open winner Sloane Stephens to cap a fruitful day for British tennis players at the Australian Open.
Raducanu ended a three-match losing run by beating American Stephens 6-0, 2-6, 6-1 to set up a second round clash with Danka Kovinic on Montenegro.
Earlier, Andy Murray, Dan Evans and Heather Watson also won their first round matches but Liam Broady and Harriet Dart followed Monday casualty Cameron Norrie out of the tournament.
In her first Grand Slam match since her US Open triumph last year, Raducanu raced to the first set in just 17 minutes to revive memories of that famous run.
Stephens found her feet in a see-saw second set and levelled the match, but 17th seed Raducanu quickly reasserted her authority in the decider.
The 19-year-old from Bromley had not won a match since October but seems to relish the Grand Slam stage, having also reached the fourth round on her Wimbledon debut last summer.
Murray, meanwhile, came through a five-set battle with 21st seed Nikoloz Basilashvili in his first match at the Australian Open for three years.
The 34-year-old saw off the dogged Georgian 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4 and will face Japan’s Taro Daniel in round two.
“It’s been a tough three or four years but I’ve put in a lot of hard work to get here,” said Murray.
“I’ve played on this court many times and the atmosphere is always incredible. It is where I thought I had potentially played my last match but to win a five-set battle like that, I couldn’t have asked any more.”
Men’s 24th seed Evans impressed in a 6-4 ,6-3, 6-0 victory over former top-10 player David Goffin, while Watson beat Egypt’s Mayar Sherif 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.