Emma Raducanu suffered a slender first-round defeat in Strasbourg as she returned to motion after greater than two months away from the WTA Tour.
The British primary has been recovering from a post-viral illness and had not performed since a third-round defeat by Amanda Anisimova at Indian Wells in March.
Granted a wildcard for the WTA 500 occasion in Strasbourg, her return didn’t go to plan as she fell to a 6-4 7-6 (7-4) defeat by French dwelling hope Diane Parry.
It means Raducanu could have performed only one match on clay earlier than the French Open – the second Grand Slam occasion of the yr – begins on Sunday.
After a 10-week absence from the Tour, Raducanu has slipped from twenty third to thirty seventh on the earth rankings and he or she is not going to be seeded at Roland Garros.
Enjoying her first match since reuniting with coach Andrew Richardson – who helped information her to the US Open title as a teenage qualifier – Raducanu acquired off to a powerful begin in France, spraying fierce backhand winners down the road and transferring nimbly across the court docket as she broke for a 4-2 lead.
However double faults began to creep into her recreation and Parry reeled Raducanu again in earlier than taking cost to wrap up the opener.
After saving 5 break factors to cease Parry from pulling away early within the second set, Raducanu briefly rediscovered her rhythm to strike first – solely to observe the world quantity 94 break again instantly once more.
The Frenchwoman broke once more to go 5-4 up, however Raducanu held agency to cease Parry from serving out the victory on two events and pressure a tie-break.
After whacking the ball into the stands in frustration, Parry regained her composure to ultimately see out the straight-set victory after two hours and 26 minutes.
Whereas the loss limits Raducanu’s preparation for the French Open, there are positives to take for the Briton as she heads to Paris.
She seemed relaxed as Richardson dished out directions and encouragement from the participant’s field, whereas she confirmed resilience in keeping off 16 break factors and making it tough for Parry till the tip.
Parry will face both China’s Zhang Shuai within the second spherical after she defeated Spain’s Cristina Bucsa 2-6 7-6 (9-7) 7-5.
