Australian Open: Emma Raducanu beats Sloane Stephens on Melbourne debut

Jonathan Jurejko is a sports reporter for the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Last updated on 18 minutes ago.

The last female Grand Slam champion in Britain was Emma Raducanu, who won the US Open in September.

The venue is Melbourne Park.

The coverage includes daily radio commentaries on Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, live text commentaries on the website and app, and TV highlights on Saturday.

Britain's Emma Raducanu showed quality and resilience to beat American Sloane Stephens in three sets for a spot in the Australian Open second round.

The US Open champion defeated another winner in New York on her senior debut.

The 17th seed was sharp as she took the first set in 17 minutes, but she made a few errors in the second set.

The game was decided by the control of Raducanu.

The 19-year-old will face Danka Kovinic in the second round.

She dropped her racquet on the court to show how much it meant to win her first Grand Slam match since the US Open.

"It was a very good match, both of us put everything out there, and I want to thank the crowd for staying," said the victor, who wrapped up victory shortly before midnight.

I'm happy to come through against such a great champion.

More to come.