Emma Raducanu is on course to face Coco Gauff in the second round of Indian Wells (Image: Getty)
is on a collision course with at the upcoming WTA 1000 in Indian Wells. , who has a bye directly into the second round.
The young champions have met once before, at the 2023 , where Gauff won in straight sets. While it was a routine win, the American later admitted she was “nervous” for the highly anticipated contest with Raducanu.
Gauff was the seventh seed when she faced Raducanu in round two of the Aussie Open a couple of years ago. Raducanu had come into the tournament as a question mark, having injured her ankle a few days earlier.
But she won her first-round match to set up her first meeting with Gauff. It was a hyped-up contest between two teen sensations.
Raducanu had burst onto the scene as an 18-year-old, winning the 2021 US Open as a qualifier just weeks after finishing her A Levels. Meanwhile, Gauff had her breakthrough at a couple of years earlier when she was just 15.
Both women could feel the weight of the occasion but Gauff came out on top, stopping Raducanu from making a late fightback and winning 6-3 7-6(4). Afterwards, the 20-year-old admitted the anticipation of their first meeting made her nervous.
Coco Gauff was ‘nervous’ when she first faced Emma Raducanu at the 2023 Australian Open (Image: Getty)
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“In the beginning, I think we both started off rocky but I think the match was good quality for the most part, considering the circumstances,” the current world No. 3 said.
“Both of us were nervous. This was a long-anticipated matchup since the draw came out, so I’m glad this was a good match for you guys.”
Meanwhile, Raducanu was full of praise for her opponent. “She is a great mover, great athlete,” the Brit explained.
“Puts another ball in play, so you feel like you have to squeeze it closer to the line and then she kind of teases errors out of you that way.”
The young stars are now on course for their second career meeting in Indian Wells. If Raducanu beats Moyuka Uchijima in round one, she is guaranteed to face Gauff in the second round.
The tournament marks Raducanu’s first appearance since towards the Brit turned up at her second-round match in Dubai.
The man in question had approached Raducanu the previous day. She alerted the WTA and tournament officials, and efforts were made to locate the man on-site. He was ejected from the match when Raducanu spotted him.
In a statement, the WTA said: “On Monday, February 17, was approached in a public area by a man who exhibited fixated behaviour.
“This same individual was identified in the first few rows during Emma’s match on Tuesday at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships and subsequently ejected. He will be banned from all WTA events pending a threat assessment.”
Dubai authorities later confirmed that and said the man “signed a formal undertaking to maintain distance from her”.