Emma Raducanu’s strong start to the North American hard-court swing continued as she saw off Peyton Stearns at the Canadian Open.
The British star downed world No 37 Stearns 6-2, 6-4 in the second round in Montreal for her latest convincing triumph.
Raducanu broke the 23-year-old American twice and lost only four points on serve as she dominated the opening set.
Stearns provided greater resistance in the second set as she took a 4-2 lead, but Raducanu won the next four games to seal the win.
The 22-year-old now holds a 3-0 record against Stearns, who she is yet to drop a set against.
“I know Peyton is a really tough opponent, we’ve played two times in the past and always had really long matches,” Raducanu said post match. “I’m really happy with how I came through in that match.
“I kind of lost my focus at some moments in the second set and she took advantage, but very happy that I came through against a top opponent and happy to extend my stay in Montreal.
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“I just want to say thank you [to the fans], I saw the Union Jack in clutch moments and I was actually born in Canada, so to come back and to me it means so much to do well here and very happy to be into the next round.”
Having kicked off her summer hard-court campaign at the Citi DC Open last week, Raducanu has won five of her last six matches in straight sets.
She overcame Marta Kostyuk, Naomi Osaka and Maria Sakkari before losing to Anna Kalinskaya in the semi-finals in Washington. In her opening match in Canada, Raducanu beat Elena-Gabriela Ruse 6-2, 6-4.
Raducanu started the week as the world No 33 after her run at the WTA 500 in DC.
The former US Open winner then dropped down to 42nd in the Live WTA Rankings when the points from her quarter-final result at the 2024 Citi Open dropped. This is because last year’s event was held a week later in the calendar.
With her two victories in Montreal, Raducanu has moved back up to 37th place in the Live Rankings, and she could climb as high as 34th if she wins her next match, which is against world No 7 and Wimbledon runner-up Amanda Anisimova.
The Brit holds a 2-0 record against the 23-year-old American, with both of her victories coming in straight sets on hard courts earlier this year: at the Australian Open and the Miami Open.
Securing a top 32 seeding for the US Open is achievable for Raducanu, and this would increase her chances of having a more favourable early draw at Flushing Meadows.
Raducanu is not dropping any more points before the New York major (besides the Washington points reflected in the live rankings) as she did not play in Canada or Cincinnati in 2024.
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