Raducanu completes fairytale in New York by winning US Open

Emma Raducanu of Great Britain (left) is presented the championship trophy by Billie Jean King after her match against Leylah Fernandez of Canada in the women’s singles final on day 13 of the 2021 US Open tennis tournament at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center - USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK (Reuters): Britain’s Emma Raducanu completed a Grand Slam fairytale on Saturday by beating Canadian Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 in the battle of the teens to be crowned US Open champion.

The 18-year-old became the first-ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam title and the first British woman to hoist a major trophy since Virginia Wade, who was watching from courtside, triumphed at Wimbledon in 1977.

“As for the three weeks I’ve spent in New York, I would say that having such a supportive team like I have over there everyone in that team and everyone back home who isn’t here but is watching on TV, thank you so much,” said Raducanu, who will shoot up from 150th to number 24 in the world rankings on Monday.

“Most of all, I would say thank you to everyone here in New York, thank you all for making me feel so at home from my first qualifying match all the way to the final.” The first Grand Slam final — men or women — to be contested by two unseeded players was an improbable match-up that no one could have predicted, featuring 150th-ranked qualifier Raducanu and little-known Fernandez who is 73rd in the standings.

One unseeded player making a major final would be considered remarkable, two enters the realm of unbelievable.

All the more remarkable was that Raducanu’s march to the title required 10 matches, including three wins in qualifying, and she did it without dropping a single set along the way. She swatted aside more experienced opponents with the same ease as she hammered winners.

Fernandez left a graveyard of seeds and champions in her trail to the final, her victims including second-seeded Aryna Sabalenka, four-time Grand Slam winner and defending champion Naomi Osaka, fifth seed Elina Svitolina, and three-time Grand Slam winner Angelique Kerber.

For the first time during the Flushing Meadows fortnight, the 19-year-old Canadian faced a younger opponent, if only by a couple of months, but she had no answers for the icy cool Raducanu.

Both players walked out onto a frothing Arthur Ashe Stadium court with looks that suggested ‘I can’t believe I am here’, and with ear-to-ear grins but they quickly had their game faces on.

The charismatic teens had charmed the New York crowds with their fearless play and contagious enthusiasm, leaving excited fans a difficult choice over who to back in the final which in the end was evenly split.

“It was an incredibly difficult match but I thought the level was extremely high, said Raducanu. Leylah’s always going to play great tennis and always going to fight, that’s just the competitor she is ... I think just staying in the moment, focusing on what I had to do ... really helped in those tough times.”