Britain’s 44-year wait for a women’s Grand Slam singles title was ended by Emma Raducanu win over Caanda’s Leylah Fernandez to secure the US Open on Saturday, September 11, 2021.
Raducanu won the title with a 6-4 6-3 win over her 19-year-old Canadian opponent in a final staged in New York.
The two shared a warm hug before Raducanu headed up the stairs at Arthur Ashe Stadium to celebrate with her support box.
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.”
She will take home £1.8m in prize money, rise to 23 in the world rankings and will become the British number one on Monday.
Raducanu will also know that she has starred in one of the biggest moments in British sporting history – and captured the imagination of the fans at home and in New York.
With the 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
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