Emma Raducanu entered the history books for the wrong reasons after crashing out in the opening round at Indian Wells.
The 22-year-old was beaten in straight sets (6-3, 6-2) by Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima and the defeat ensured she was placed into an unwanted category.
GettyEmma Raducanu’s latest defeat means she has now claimed an unwanted tennis record[/caption]
The loss means Raducanu now has the lowest win percentage at the WTA 1000 level for a former Grand Slam winner.
Her win percentage stands at a disappointing 42.3 per cent, slipping below Francesca Schiavone who boasts a 42.4 per cent win ratio.
The 2021 US Open remains Raducanu’s only professional title having not reached a Tour title since her victory at Flushing Meadows.
The remaining four players on the unwanted list (Schiavone, Sofia Kenin, Sloane Stephens and Jelena Ostapenko) have all added to their major victory with an additional Tour title.
Raducanu’s latest defeat has seen her slip further down the WTA ranking’s from No. 55 to 59 in the world.
It is a long way from her career-high ranking on No.10 that she achieved back in 2022.
The loss at Indian Wells was her first appearance since being targeted by a stalker during a match in Dubai last month.
A man exhibiting “fixated behaviour” followed Raducanu during the Dubai Championships in February, which left the Brit in floods of tears during a defeat to Karolina Muchova.
The individual was handed a ban from all future WTA events “pending a threat assessment” and given a restraining order.
The incident has proved to be an arduous moment in Raducanu’s career so much so that she was unsure as to whether she would compete at Indian Wells.
After the defeat to Uchijima, Raducanu said: “I didn’t have what happened in Dubai in my head at all today. If anything, [it was] a bit of a lack of preparation on the tennis court, playing someone who played pretty good in these extremely awkward conditions.
“I think it depends what sort of frame of mind you are in. I think all the players will say, if they are feeling good, it’s great. If they are not, it can be more difficult and challenging.
“You have to just overcome whatever hurdles that come your way and just keep going forward.”
“It was just a very difficult match for me,” she added. “I tried to be aggressive, I tried to make the ball, but I guess it didn’t work.
“I had great support around me. I was feeling pretty good. I think today was just a bit of a curveball, but I guess I am just going to move on.”
On working alongside new coach Vladimir Platenik, Raducanu said: “It is good that I have someone who is very experienced.
“We will see how the work goes, how we get on, on and off the court and the methods.
“I am looking forward to seeing how it goes. I think I just need to keep trying to put one foot in front of the other and not look back too much.
“I could improve by being more aggressive and having a better quality of shot going forward into the court more. I think I could improve every area of my game, to be honest, after today’s performance.”
