Emma Raducanu Handles Serena Williams In Two Straight Sets For Opening-Round Upset In Cincy

An opening-round matchup at the Western & Southern Open between Serena Williams, 40, and Emma Raducanu, 19, ended in disappointment for the 23-time major champion.

Williams, who is set to retire after this year's U.S. Open, appeared defeated at the Cincinnati event on Tuesday, losing two straight sets — 6-4, 6-0 — to give Raducanu the swift victory in an hour's time.

Raducanu was mechanical in the win: hitting 14 winners while only making one unforced error.

Serena reportedly denied giving an interview after the match. Raducanu spoke on honoring Williams' legacy, even in defeat amid the tennis great's final send-off.

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"We all should honor Serena and her amazing career," Raducanu said after the victory. "I'm so grateful for the experience to have been able to play her and for our careers to have crossed over. Everything she's achieved is so inspirational. It was a true honor to share the court with her."

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"I am so grateful for the experience to have played her and for our careers to have crossed over. It was an honor to share the court with her. The atmosphere tonight was amazing," Raducanu added. "Even when you guys (the crowd) were cheering for her, I was all for it."

The crowd went wild for Williams halfway through the first set as the tennis champ nearly rallied, down 4-1, to tease crowds until Raducanu fended off Serena's surge.

Tuesday marked Serena's second-straight defeat since announcing her plan to step away.

In an exclusive feature with Vogue, Williams announced that she was stepping away after nearly two decades of pro action.

“I have never liked the word retirement," Williams wrote. "It doesn’t feel like a modern word to me. I’ve been thinking of this as a transition, but I want to be sensitive about how I use that word, which means something very specific and important to a community of people. Maybe the best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution.”