Raducanu shrugs off poor build-up to show her mettle

Emma Raducanu said she was going to “just rock up” at Wimbledon after her preparations were ravaged by injury but the British teenager was all business once she walked out on to Centre Court on Monday, showing steely determination and court craft.

She may be the US Open champion but with not even a full set of grass court play under her belt this year, plus a side injury that left her participation in doubt until three days ago and with the pressure of being the home nation's latest “Big Hope”, it was never going to be a cruise on her first appearance on Centre Court.

Belgian Alison van Uytvanck, who won two grass court events in her preparation, was by no means a first-round patsy but Raducanu overcame some early waywardness to work out how to deal with her awkward opponent in a way that belied her limited experience.

Her 6-4 6-4 victory made it five first-round wins in her five Grand Slam appearances — a timely reminder that even though she is 19 and was virtually unknown when she came to Wimbledon as a wild card last year, she knows what she is doing.

“I was very pleased with the way I adapted to everything that she threw at me,” Raducanu said.

“Alison's game is really awkward. She has great hands; she'll chip one back and it will just die on the floor. Then she'll hit one and it's really flat and fast. You don't really know what's going to come at you.”

Just as Raducanu is gaining experience from her whirlwind year opponents are learning more about her. In contrast to her freewheeling, nothing-to-lose hitting en route to the US Open title, she is now being forced to learn on the job.

“When no-one knows you, no-one knows your game, that is something that I experienced in a positive way last summer,” she said.

“Since then I think that people have definitely watched me and raised their level and raised their game and played some great tennis. I haven't necessarily played badly in a lot of the matches I've lost.”

American Danielle Collins was the highest women's seed to fall on day one at Wimbledon as she went down 5-7 6-4 6-4 to Marie Bouzkova.

Australian Open runner-up Collins, seeded seven, looked on course for the second round after taking a tight opener but came unstuck against the 66th-ranked Czech player.

Bouzkova faces another American next in the form of Ann Li.Another seed to fall in the women's draw was number 22 Martina Trevisan, a French Open semifinalist this month, who was thrashed 6-2 6-0 by fellow Italian Elisabetta Cocciaretto.