China's Wang Xinyu celebrates her victory at the Linz Open tennis tournament in Linz, Austria, November 9, 2021. /CFP
Chinese tennis player Wang Xinyu pulled off the biggest upset of the Linz Open in Austria on Tuesday, outlasting No. 1 seed and U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu 6-1, 6-7(0), 7-5, in the second round.
"I really felt the passion here," the 20-year-old Chinese player from Shenzhen said after her triumph. "It's also my first time here. I really enjoy playing this tournament."
The defeat brought the curtain down on Raducanu's breakthrough season, during which she won her maiden Grand Slam, at Flushing Meadows in September.
Wang got off to a blistering start and clinched the opener in just under half an hour as her deep returns forced the top seed into a number of errors. Raducanu was unable to match her opponent, who won over 85 percent of points on her first serve.
Emma Raducanu (R) of Britain congratulates winner Wang Xinyu of China after their women's singles match at the Linz Open in Linz, Austria, November 9, 2021. /CFP
"I thought that it was a really high-level match, the Briton said. "I thought that Xinyu played extremely well, especially the first set. I'm proud of the way that I performed to try and get back in the match when everything was going her way and she was playing extremely well."
With her season now finished, Raducanu, who turns 19 on Saturday, has appointed German Torben Beltz as her new coach.
Wang paired compatriot Zheng Saisai to win the women's doubles round of 16 match with a 7-5, 6-0 victory over Austrian duo Sinja Kraus and Julia Grabher on Tuesday. They will face Russian pair Ekaterina Alexandrova and Yana Sizikova in the quarterfinals.
(With input from agencies)