Janice Tjen came into her match against Emma Raducanu with a box of tricks, but found herself facing an unanswerable offense. Raducanu’s relentless attacking game gave Tjen no reply, leading to a straightforward 6-2, 6-1 win for the British star.
Tjen’s style, with its blend of spin and slice, is designed to ask questions of her opponents. However, Raducanu’s offense was the answer to every one of them. For Tjen’s slice, Raducanu had a powerful drive. For her spin, Raducanu had aggressive court positioning to take the ball early.
The core of the problem for Tjen was the serve. Raducanu’s powerful and accurate serving simply did not allow Tjen to get into enough rallies to pose her tactical questions. The points were often over before Tjen had a chance to work her magic, a testament to Raducanu’s first-strike tennis.
This performance showed that the best defense is a good offense. Raducanu did not try to solve Tjen’s puzzles; she simply overwhelmed her with an offensive onslaught that was unanswerable. This aggressive approach has served her well, and she will look to continue it against her next opponent.