WASHINGTON D.C. -- Emma Raducanu advanced to the second round of the Mubadala Citi DC Open after defeating No.35 Elise Mertens 6-2, 3-6, 6-4 on Monday night. In a match that ended near midnight, Raducanu saved five break points late in the third set to snuff out Mertens' bid for a comeback.

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"I was playing some pretty good tennis in patches throughout," Raducanu said, "especially in the first set and moments in the third set. I lost some focus in the second. It's not easy playing at 11:30. I got here Thursday night so I'm still jet-lagged.

"I was telling myself, 'I'm not leaving. This is not happening. You're not losing this match." 

Tale of the tape: Raducanu and Mertens were facing off for the second time in the last month. Raducanu dropped just three games to the Belgian in the second round at Wimbledon.

Back into the Top 100 after her strong summer, Raducanu received a wild card into the main draw.

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How the match was won: Raducanu took advantage of Mertens' more error-prone start to win five straight games from 2-1 down in the first set. The 2021 US Open champion tallied nine winners to Merten's five, while keeping a cleaner sheet from the baseline. Mertens served at just 40 percent in the opening frame, allowing Raducanu to break serve with ease.

The second set went with the server until Mertens mounted a surge in the sixth game. Serving down 3-2, Raducanu could not close out a 40-0 lead and a netted forehand gave Mertens the break she needed to force a deciding set. 

The final set pivoted on the two longest games of the match. Raducanu broke first to lead 3-1 but could not consolidate. Serving down 3-2, Mertens looked in position to close out the hold with a smart foray into the net but was beaten by a stellar forehand pass up the line by Raducanu. In the end, Mertens survived the five-deuce game by saving two break points to hold to 3-3. 

Turning point: Raducanu pulled off her own Houdini act in the next game. With courageous shot-making, Raducanu saved five break points in a six-deuce game to hold serve and keep the match in the balance. Raducanu rode her momentum to break Mertens for a 5-3 lead. But for the second time in the set, Raducanu failed to consolidate her lead and Mertens broke easily to put the match back on serve. 

This time, Raducanu issued the perfect response to close out the win, breaking Mertens for a sixth and final time. Raducanu earned match point with a pinpoint backhand volley and sealed the 2-hour and 26-minute win on Mertens' 11th double fault of the match. 

Words from the winner: "I've been training and playing so good in practice," Raducanu said. "I've been really on it. So on the court, I was telling myself, look, you've been so focused for so long. There's no way you're not going to try right now. You're going to fight until the very end. You didn't put all that work in for nothing."

"I'm happy with how I pulled myself out of it, but I do need to focus."

Next up: Raducanu will face an American in the second round. She awaits the winner of the first-round duel between No.51 Peyton Stearns and local wild card Clervie Ngounoue.