[News] 18-year-old Emma Raducanu wins US Open in historic final, becomes Britain’s first female singles Grand Slam champion in 44 years

Emma Raducanu has ended Britain’s 44-year wait for a women’s Grand Slam singles champion after beating Leylah Fernandez to win the US Open in a thrilling style.

 

Raducanu, the first qualifier ever to reach a Grand Slam final, beat  her 19-year-old Canadian opponent 6-4, 6-3 at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.

 

The 18 year old threw herself to the floor in disbelief after winning the tournament and later climbed into the stands to celebrate with her team members.

 

Raducanu was cheered on by an emotional Virginia Wade, who was the last British woman to win a major trophy at Wimbledon in 1977.

 

“It means so much to have Virginia Wade here and also Tim Henman,” Raducanu said in her on-court speech.

“They are British icons and for me to follow in their footsteps gave me the belief I could do it.”

 

“From pretty early on I’ve always dreamed of winning a Grand Slam, and you say, ‘I want to win a Grand Slam,'” she said. “But to have the belief I did in actually executing it, I can’t believe it.”

 

With the historic victory, Raducanu becomes:

• The first British female winner at Flushing Meadows since Virginia Wade in 1968
• The first qualifier in the Open era to win a Slam
• The youngest women’s Slam champion since Maria Sharapova at Wimbledon in 2004
• The youngest Briton to win a Grand Slam title

The first woman to win the US Open without dropping a set since Serena Williams in 2014