• Briton overcomes Mananchaya Sawangkaew 6-4, 6-1

• Thai opponent shines in first set before falling away

Sixteen minutes into her opening match at Melbourne Park, Emma Raducanu was 1-3, 15-40 down and flailing badly. Across the net from a relatively unknown opponent ­playing lights‑out tennis on her grand slam debut, this could have been a moment where panic set in, errors flowed and life became even more difficult.

However, Raducanu remained positive and rallied impressively, recovering quickly from her slow start before moving easily into the second round of the Australian Open with a 6-4, 6-1 win against ­Mananchaya Sawangkaew of Thailand.