The Red Arrows sending shockwaves from above. The slippy surface causing an injury scare from below. An 18-year-old American prodigy on the other side of the Andy Murray Arena.
It did not matter what was thrown at Emma Raducanu on her gruelling double-header day at Queen’s. She showed her resilience, mentally and physically, and reached her first-ever grass-court final.
The British No 1 beat Kamilla Rakhimova in the quarter-finals at lunchtime – 6-3, 7-5 in a match lasting nearly two hours – then Iva Jovic in the semi-finals at teatime – 6-2, 6-2 in one hour and 31 minutes.
‘It means everything to be doing it at Queen’s in front of everyone, the support was electric,’ Raducanu told the BBC.
‘I think this week has been incredible. I enjoy playing here and that shows on my tennis.
‘My team and I have stuck through some tough moments in the last few months, so I want to thank them for getting me through.’
Emma Raducanu celebrates during her semi-final victory over Iva Jovic, her second match of the day
She will now face a lucky loser in Donna Vekic, the Croatian who beat Katie Boulter in her own semi-final. The last British woman to be crowned champion at Queen’s was Ann Jones, who claimed this title in 1969 and then, in that same year, won Wimbledon as well.
Raducanu was made to work to come within one win of matching Jones as beating Rakhimova was not without its complications, due to two stoppages – one silly and the other serious.
The first came at 2-2 and 40-0, when the Red Arrows whizzed overhead, along with a series of other aircrafts which prompted play to be paused for five minutes.
The second was more concerning at 6-3, 2-2, as Raducanu slipped while changing direction and required a medical timeout with her left thigh being wrapped. Grimacing and glancing to her corner, whose main messaging was that she needed to ‘be brave’, Raducanu soldiered on to defeat Rakhimova.
Then came Jovic, her second match of the day against a teenager ranked 19th in the world, seeded sixth at this tournament and on the rise.
Earlier the British No 1 saw her clashed paused with the arrival of the Red Arrows overhead
Raducanu’s left thigh remained bandaged, and she appeared keen to restrict engaging the rallies. After breaking Jovic, Raducanu led 4-1 in the first set, prompting her American opponent asked for a medical timeout. She removed her left shoe to reveal the heavy strapping around her ankle, which appeared to be causing considerable discomfort.
While trading breaks in the second set, Raducanu found herself trailing 0-40. In a further sign of her resilience, she battled back to hold her serve. The Brit was unrecognisable from what we have seen of her recently, including at last month’s French Open.
Raducanu will hardly have faced a day as draining as this in her career, and, even if the legs felt like jelly by the end of it, she can be proud of what she put up. Sunday will now resemble her biggest final since winning the US Open in 2021, with Raducanu now working again with her former coach, Andrew Richardson.
Worrying scenes at the Andy Murray Arena saw Raducanu slip on the turf during her semi-final
The visitors to Queen’s had hoped to see an all-British final between Raducanu and Boulter, though the latter was unable to fulfil her side of the bargain.
Boulter tried to replicate the rise in level she had shown while stunning Elena Rybakina, the former Wimbledon champion ranked No 2 in the world, on Friday.
Yet Vekic was in command of their semi-final contest throughout. Vekic did not allow Boulter a single break point in her 6-1, 6-3 victory and, a lucky loser at this tournament, she will now face Raducanu in the final instead.
