Emma Raducanu to enter world top 75 following dream run at US Open – and British No1 ranking is next in teenager’s sights
British tennis sensation Emma Raducanu is guaranteed to reach the top 75 of the women’s rankings for the first time as a result of her dream run at the US Open.
The 18-year-old from Bromley beat American Shelby Rogers on Monday night to reach the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows, where she is yet to even lose a set.
Raducanu, who enjoyed a breakthrough Wimbledon campaign this summer, was ranked 150th before the US Open and will rise to at least 74 next week.
She faces recently crowned Olympic champion Belinda Bencic of Switzerland in the last eight tomorrow.
Another victory against the odds would take Raducanu to the brink of the top 50. It would also lift her above Johanna Konta and Heather Watson, making her the new British No1.
Raducanu had to come through qualifying just to make her debut in the main draw of the US Open. She did not drop a set in those three matches either.
She is the only the third qualifier to reach the quarter-finals of the tournament in the Open Era, while her tally of just 15 games lost in the first four rounds is the lowest of any player since Serena Williams in 2013.
“It feels absolutely amazing,” she said after beating Rogers, who had seen off world No1 Ashleigh Barty in the previous round.
“Shelby is a great opponent, she’s done so well in the US Open and she’s had a great week so I knew it was going to be a tough match.”
Raducanu, who was born in Canada to a Romanian father and Chinese mother, proved a breakout star of Wimbledon.
She reached the second week on her first appearance but retired from her fourth-round match with Ajla Tomljanovic after suffering breathing difficulties.
After receiving her A Level results – she achieved A* in maths and A in economics – the teenager headed for the US hard court circuit, where she has honed her game and acclimatised to the heat and humidity for her run in New York.
“It definitely feels surreal. I didn’t expect to be here at all,” she added. “I feel very confident in my game and with each one I am growing and learning new things.”