Australian Open: Emma Raducanu backed for title after round one win

She couldn't do it again, could she?

The question must have occurred to at least one punter after the British tennis sensation Emma Raducanu, who wowed bettors and opponents alike by winning the US Open as a qualifier in September, stormed into the second round of the Australian Open.

On her debut at the year's first Grand Slam in Melbourne - and the first since her victory in the US - Raducanu beat the American Sloane Stephens 6-0 2-6 6-1.

Raducanu was backed on the Betfair Exchange afterwards and is 21.020/1 in the Australian Open women's singles outright winner market.

She shortened to as low as 17.016/1 from a prematch price of 25.024/1 before drifting back out to her current odds.

In winning the first set without losing a game, she showed some of the quality that saw her triumph in New York four months ago, and she demonstrated plenty of reslience to win the third comfortably after dropping the second.

Radu rises on biggest stage

The victory will have reassured some fans that she is here to stay at tennis's top table. There had been concersn after Raducanu lost her opening match of 2022 6-0 6-1 to Elena Rybakina in Sydney.

But today's win indicated that Raducanu rises to the occasion on the biggest stages.

Next the Brit will play Montenegro's Danka Kovinic in the second round on Thursday.

Home favourite Ashleigh Barty 3.953/1 leads the betting while two-time winner and defending champion Naomi Osaka 9.08/1 (pictued above) comes next.

Andy Murray is also through to the second round in the men's after he overcame Nikoloz Basilashvili in a five set thriller.

Get tips for the pick of the matches in the men's and women's singles on every day of the Australian Open from Dan Weston.