Emma Raducanu has been beaten in the first round of the French Open after suffering a nightmare opening set.
The British number one lost 6-0, 7-6 (4) to Argentina's Solana Sierra, in a contest to forget for the 23-year-old.
Raducanu had chosen to compete in the closing stages of the clay-court season after spending two-and-a-half months sidelined by a post-viral illness.
Having competed at Roland Garros on two previous occasions, the 23-year-old had always advanced beyond the opening round until today's setback.
The opening set proved catastrophic for Raducanu, who lost it in merely 25 minutes without winning a single game.
Her statistics painted a bleak picture: zero winners against 15 unforced errors as she scattered shots across court 13.
Coach Andrew Richardson, who guided her to US Open glory and recently reunited with the Briton, could do little to stop the onslaught.
Facing what threatened to become one of her most humiliating defeats when trailing 4-1 in the second set, Raducanu gradually found her rhythm by extending rallies and forcing mistakes from Sierra.
Raducanu has lost her opening round of the French Open
|REUTERS
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However, the Argentine seized control of the decider, racing to a 5-1 advantage that proved insurmountable for the Briton.
Raducanu's match ended with a damaging total of 42 unforced errors, a figure that ultimately proved decisive against the clay court specialist competing in only her sixth grand slam tournament.
The lingering effects of illness that first struck in early February remained evident, with Raducanu bending over and coughing into her towel during a changeover after clawing back to 4-3.
Following a narrow defeat to Diane Parry in Strasbourg earlier this week, Raducanu had taken encouragement from her performance despite the loss.
Solana Sierra convincingly knocked out Raducanu
|REUTERS
Raducanu shared before the tournament that she felt her health was improving after over two months out.
She said: "I feel a lot better. I thought I'd completely flipped it.
"I think there's just been a little bit of a lingering cough recently. But I feel health-wise really good.
"I played a really positive match last week in Strasbourg in the sense it was over two hours, and I think physically I pulled up really well from it.
The British number one has been suffering from illness
|REUTERS
"So I'm happy to take that and build from it."
The Briton's absence meant she fell out of the top 32 and went in unseeded to the French Open.
Raducanu will now turn her attention to the grass court season, a surface on which she has typically performed well, hoping to regain full fitness and rediscover her best form.
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