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Sep 11, 2021 - Sports

Emma Raducanu becomes youngest major tennis champion since 2004 after U.S. Open win

headshot
mma Raducanu of Great Britain celebrates winning match point to defeat Leylah Annie Fernandez of Canada during the second set of their Women's Singles final match on Day Thirteen of the 2021 US Open.

Photo: Elsa/Getty Images

Britain's Emma Raducanu became the youngest major tennis champion since 2004 on Saturday after beating Leylah Fernandez in the U.S. Open final.

Why it matters: Saturday's finale was the first Grand Slam final between teenagers since the 1999 U.S. Open when Serena Williams beat Martina Hingis, per the New York Times.

  • Raducanu became the first woman from Britain to win the U.S. Open since Virginia Wade in 1977.

The big picture: Raducanu, 18, didn't drop a single set throughout the tournament, and is the first woman to do so since German Angelique Kerber in 2016, per Reuters.

  • Raducanu won the first set, 6-4, against 19-year-old Fernandez of Canada. She later won the second set 6-3.
  • In 2018, Raducanu played against Fernandez in the second round of the Wimbledon juniors. Raducanu won 6-2, 6-4.
  • "Honestly I just can't believe it. A shock. Crazy," Raducanu said, per Reuters. "To be in a Grand Slam final at this stage of my career, yeah, I have no words."
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