• Emma Raducanu beat Linda Fruhvirtova 4-6, 6-4.
• The 20-year-old British player will play Viktoria Kuzmova of Slovakia next.
• Top-seeded Coco Gauff beat Tatjana Maria, who had lost her last five matches.

Emma Raducanu got off to a winning start in 2023 by beating Linda Fruhvirtova in her first match of the year at the ASB Classic in Auckland.

The 20-year-old British player beat the 17-year-old Czech rising star in a match that was interrupted by bad weather. The score was 4-6, 6-4, and 6-2.

Raducanu was down by a set and a break to her opponent, who was ranked 79th in the world.

But she turned things around and won the match by taking four games in a row.

Raducanu said, “I told him to stop doing that and just speed up, be more aggressive, and swing more freely.”

“It’s always hard to play your first game of the year, and the weather made it even harder.

“I was really enjoying the help. I felt like everyone was on my side, and I loved it so much. Some parts of the score were hard, and a young child would say, “Come on, Emma,” and I would say, “Come on, let’s go.”

She had to end her 2022 campaign early in October because she hurt her wrist.

The number 105 in the world Viktoria Kuzmova of Slovakia will be Raducanu’s next opponent.

Top-seeded Coco Gauff beat Tatjana Maria, who had lost her last five matches, 6-4, 6-1, to move on to the round of 16.

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