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Emma Raducanu was only playing her second game since she won the US Open 11 September
Emma Raducanu won her first game as champion of the US Open at the Transylvania Open.
The world number 23 seeded in Romania had the perfect response to Slovenia's Polona Shecog (30).
Raducanu, who was playing in her father's country for the first time won 4-6 7-5 6-1 and advanced to the second round.
Although she was a Grand Slam champion this was her first WTA tour match. Covid-19 restrictions prevented fans from entering Cluj-Napoca, but her grandmother Niculina, 88, was there to witness her hard-fought win.
Raducanu laughed and smiled throughout her interview after the match, in which she spoke almost entirely of Romanian and was asked about her favorite local dish.
She said, "This is a lot to play with my dad's land."
Raducanu is still searching for a coach after her US Open victory and asked for patience prior to the WTA 250 event.
She was able to win despite playing against a much more experienced opponent over a match that lasted two hours and 29 mins.
The teenager led by 3-0, but Hercog (ranked 124 in the World) won both her break points to win back the match and took the final five games of the first set.
Raducanu recovered in the second round and started to display some of the same grit and shot selection skills that brought her that thrilling win in New York.
Hercog held off three break points in game four of the set. Raducanu saved one in each her two last service games to make it 6-5.
After Hercog sent a forehand on the final of three break points, the Briton won the set. She then breezed through the first five games in the third set.
Hercog held serve after saving two match point and had a break in the next game. But Raducanu won it with an Ace and won it. This set up a match against Ana Bogdan, Romania's world number one, who is 28.
Norrie wins in Vienna
Cameron Norrie won his third consecutive victory by beating Marton Fucsovics 7-6(4) 6-1 in round one of the Vienna Open.
For the seventh consecutive victory, the British number one was playing against the Hungarian in his first match since the breakthrough win at Indian Wells earlier in the month.
Norrie was also 11th in 12 matches. The world number 14 will face sixth seed Felix Auger Aliassime from Canada in round 2.
