British teenager Emma Raducanu’s meteoric rise continues as she reaches the final of the US Open in New York.
18 year old Raducanu extended her dream as she dominated in a straight set win against Greek 17th seed Maria Sakkari. Her 6-1 6-4 victory almost defied belief, as she is the first qualifier to reach a Grand Slam final. She is also the first female British tennis player to reach a major singles final in 44 years.
Radacanu will now play Canadian teenager Leylah Fernandez on Saturday when they meet in the final match of the tournament.
The last Brit woman in a final was Virginia Wade in Wimbledon 1977. The former champion watched on as Raducanu achieved another stunningly fearless victory on Arthur Ashe Stadium, the world’s biggest tennis court.
A ruthless run
Following a confident hit of a volley on her first match point, Raducanu dropped her racket to the floor, covering her mouth her hands. A beaming smile quickly spread across her face as she soaked up the response of a rapturous crowd.
Radacanu still can’t believe that she’s in the final, but has just been taking it a day at a time, and it has all gone so quickly. She had to play three qualifying matches to make it into the main draw, so it is a surprise to her to get this far. But she has not dropped a single set so far in any of the nine matches.
The sports star now has the opportunity to win one of tennis’ most prestigious titles when she takes on 19 year old world number 73 Fernandez. But despite her lack of experience at this level, given her previous performances, she will not be fazed by what she is about to face.
The US Open is only the second Grand Slam tournament of her career following her appearance at Wimbledon this year, where she reached the last 16. The teenager is now the youngest British Grand Slam finalist in 62 years, and the first British woman to reach a US Open final since Wade in 1968.
Before her Wimbledon success, Raducanu ranked 336th in the world, but is now on course for the top 30. Additionally, she will become Britain’s women’s number one.
“Worthy of a world number one”
Raducanu’s last 16 achievement in Wimbledon this summer catapulted her into stardom, but she has surpassed that with her extraordinary run in New York. For a relative newcomer she is dismantling more experienced players with ease. According to Britain’s former number one men’s player Greg Rusedski, her performance is “worthy of a world number one”.
French Open semi-finalist Sakkari just could not cope with Raducanu’s intensity throughout their game. In her opening two service games, Radacanu faced seven break points, but saw them all off. She held her serve and moved into a 3-0 lead. Sakkari, frustrated at her failure to win the opportunities, complained to the umpire before changing her skirt at the first switchover.
Radacanu remained seemingly unflustered throughout the match, while Sakkari became anxious. She went on to win all the decisive points, taking the first set in 36 minutes.
Radacanu stayed in front as she broke for a 2-1 lead in the second set. As pressure mounted on Sakkari, and her family watched tensely on, she held her service games. The Greek maintained hopeful of a break back as she managed to save five break points.
But then came Radacanu serving for the match. After a bumpy start to the game, the Brit was able to bring it back for a match point. As a place in the final beckoned, Radacanu held her nerve, sealing her victory with a volley.
After the match, Raducanu said how she looked to her “inspiration” Tim Henman for support and reassurance. The former British number one stood courtside in his role as a television analyst.
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