Emma Raducanu believes she is “100 percent right” with her decision. The British tennis star recently admitted that prioritizing her health was one of the main reasons for her choosing the Citi Open over the Paris Olympics. She has also revealed that if the Olympics had been played on a different surface then she could have had a second thought, but with clay court, she didn’t want to take a chance. Especially after making a comeback after such a long gap from competitive tennis, we can understand how careful she wants to be with her body at the moment. However, does she have time to rest though?

No, the 2021 US Open champion wants to keep herself ready for this year’s event. So, she has picked the Mubadala Citi DC Open as the right stage to level up her preparations for the hard court swing. She is all set to take on Belgium’s Elise Mertens in the R32. Both of these tennis stars recently crossed paths with each other at Wimbledon. Who will have the upper hand on the clay courts though?

Emma Raducanu vs Elise Mertens: Preview

Raducanu has played some exceptional tennis in her last few tournaments. She has already reached one SF and two QFs. However, she’s entering this match after her R16 defeat to the Kiwi tennis star, Lulu Sun in Wimbledon. Sun outshined Raducanu by 6-2,5-7,6-2 in that match. The Brit hit 4 aces and committed just 2 double faults against Lulu Sun. She won 54% of her first serve and about 53% of her second serve. However, in the breakpoints, Raducanu could only manage to save 8/13.

Mertens’ best results this season have been reaching the finals in Hobart and making it through to two QFs in her previous tournaments. Interestingly, Mertens is entering this match after her R64 defeat to Raducanu, earlier this month. Time will tell if she can take her revenge on the Brit or not. However, if we take a look at the numbers from that match, the Belgian could only manage to hit 1 ace and committed 1 double in the entire match. She won 52% of her first serve and 50% of her second serve. However, in the breakpoints, she recorded 0/2. Have these two played against each other before Wimbledon though?

Raducanu vs Mertens: Head-to-Head

No, that was their first meeting but surely wasn’t the last of this rivalry. Raducanu is currently ranked 89th world and she’s keen to bring back her glorious days. Elise Mertens is ranked 35th in the women’s singles ranking. So looking at the current rankings can we keep Mertens ahead of Raducanu in this faceoff?

Prediction: Raducau to win in three sets

Raducanu seems to have got back her lost touch! Her incredible performances in the last few tournaments will keep her slightly ahead in this match. She has a win-loss record of 16-10 this season, but for Mertens, it is 19-17. For the Belgian, it’s more of a revenge match, but for the Brit, it’s time to prove her potential yet again on the biggest stages of the game.

Both Raducanu and Mertens are baseline players, but the British tennis star loves to play more of an aggressive brand of tennis. Mertens, on the other hand, can blend her game with her excellent defensive skills along with insane aggressive shot-taking abilities. Raducanu loves to hit the ball early and she’s quite capable of generating power down the line. Her strong forehands and serves are two of her lethal weapons, but Mertens needs to be wary of her deceptive drop shots as well!

For the Belgian to excel in this game, she needs to use more of her flat groundstrokes with little top spins. She needs to reduce her unforced error count to bring out a favorable result from this match. However, looking at their current form, Raducanu seems most likely to finish this match with flying colors!