Great Britain suffered a 2-1 defeat to Greece in their decisive United Cup group stage tie on Monday, as Emma Raducanu lost her first match of the season 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 to Maria Sakkari. The British No. 1, who had been hampered by a foot injury during the off-season, showed signs of rust but also flashes of her best tennis before fading physically in the final set.
Raducanu, who had only resumed hitting two weeks ago, said she was proud of her effort given the circumstances. 'Considering I played five, six games in practice, it is a big effort for me. I'm really proud of how I put myself out there, despite the scenario and situation,' she said. The 23-year-old moved well in the first two sets and produced some excellent shotmaking to force a decider, but Sakkari maintained her intensity to close out her first win over Raducanu in five attempts.
Earlier, British men's No. 5 Billy Harris pushed former world No. 3 Stefanos Tsitsipas all the way before losing 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (7-4). Harris, ranked 127th, served excellently and dominated with his forehand, but Tsitsipas took control in the final-set tie-break. 'I'm glad that the level's there against someone like that. It gives me confidence going into the rest of the year,' said Harris.
In the mixed doubles dead rubber, Neal Skupski and Olivia Nicholls defeated Despina Papamichail and Stefanos Sakellaridis 6-2, 3-6, 10-4. The result means Great Britain finish second in their group, with Greece progressing to the quarter-finals.
