Preview: Emma Raducanu vs. Kaja Juvan - prediction, head-to-head, tournament so far for Transylvania Open match

Seemingly reinvigorated by her latest change of coach, British number one Emma Raducanu squares up to Slovenia's Kaja Juvan in the second round of the Transylvania Open on Wednesday.

The top seed cruised past Greet Minnen in round one - dropping just four games on the way to victory - while Juvan bested home favourite Elena Ruxandra Bertea in straight sets.

Match preview

Akin to the new manager bounce in football, the new coach bounce was in full effect for Raducanu during her first-round match in Cluj, her first top-level contest since parting ways with short-lived coach Francis Roig.

The 2021 US Open champion put her premature Australian Open exit behind her with an emphatic 6-0 6-4 victory over Belgium's Minnen, whom she mercilessly bagelled in the first set before being given a slightly rougher ride in the second.

The statistics told the story of an encounter totally dominated by Raducanu, who did not serve a single double fault, did not face a single break point and converted four of the seven such opportunities that she fashioned on her opponent's serve.

Just before splitting with Roig, the 23-year-old expressed her desire to revert to old ways - aggressively targeting the corners rather than varying up her playstyle - and a hard-hitting Raducanu certainly did that in her 70-minute victory.

Alexis Canter observed Raducanu's performance on Monday while the British number one searches for a new permanent coach, but she will now simply search for a quarter-final place at the Transylvania Open, which would equal her best-ever result at the tournament.

While Raducanu claimed one win at the Australian Open before bowing out, Juvan's Melbourne journey ended at the first hurdle, although there was no shame whatsoever in losing to the eventual champion, Elena Rybakina.

The 25-year-old - a two-time gold medallist at the 2018 Youth Olympics - returned to winning ways in professional fashion during her Transylvania opener, taking down Romanian wild card Ruxandra Bertea 6-3 6-4 in one hour and 46 minutes.

Juvan beat away five break points in the first set, and while she could not keep her 295th-ranked foe at bay in the second - being pegged back to 2-2 after taking a 2-0 lead - she eventually made the decisive breakthrough.

The world number 97's staunch defence came to the fore in that match, as she saved six of the seven break points she faced to earn her first victory of the 2026 season, having also lost her Hobart opener to Caty McNally.

Juvan is still on the hunt for her maiden WTA Tour singles title - reaching just one final so far in Strasbourg four years ago - and she will have to get past Maja Chwalinska or Olga Danilovic in the last eight if she can nip Raducanu's revival in the bud.

Tournament so far

Emma Raducanu:

First round: vs. Greet Minnen 6-0 6-4

Kaja Juvan:

First round: Elena Ruxandra Bertea 6-3 6-4

Head To Head

Wednesday's second-round match will mark the first-ever top-level meeting between Raducanu and Juvan, two right-handed players of a similar physical profile - the former standing at 5ft 7in and Juvan at 5ft 6in.

While Raducanu has landed more of her first serves in the 2026 season so far at 71.7%, she marginally trails Juvan for first-serve points won, registering 60.5% to her opponents' 64.8%.

The Briton has converted 50% of her break points to Juvan's 30.8% so far this year, though, albeit from an admittedly small sample size.

We say: Raducanu to win in two sets

Raducanu played exactly how she wants to play in her first-round win over Minnen - firing venomous shots to the corners of the court - and the Briton also expressed a refreshingly relaxed demeanour on the hard surface.

The top seed's new-found freedom should enable her to reach the quarters with relative ease, as Juvan ceded several break opportunities to Bertea last time out and has only converted four of the 13 she has fashioned for herself this season.