The young British player has raced to the third round in New York but faces a formidable opponent in the world No 41
Emma Raducanu was in the process of tearing through yet another higher ranked opponent on Thursday, establishing a 6-2, 4-0 lead against Zhang Shuai in the second round of the US Open, when the experienced Chinese player began to pull her back down to earth. As Zhang landed blows and harassed the Raducanu forehand, the rallies lengthened and the intensity became more pronounced.
It was at Wimbledon two months ago that the match intensity against another top 100 player, Ajla Tomljanovic, proved too much for Raducanu, leading to her retirement from their fourth round match due to breathing problems. But here she adjusted well and closed off the match 6-2, 6-4, clinching match point by winning the final attritional exchange.