Emma Raducanu’s latest Wimbledon campaign started off without a hitch, as the Grand Slam champion eased past one of her rising compatriots who hopes to follow in her footsteps.
In an opening-day clash on Court No. 1, former Top 10 player Raducanu moved past 17-year-old wild card Mingge (Mimi) Xu 6-3, 6-3, booking a spot in the second round of her home Grand Slam for the fourth time in her four main-draw appearances.
Raducanu needed 1 hour and 25 minutes to prevail in Monday’s battle of the Britons. It was the first time two British women faced off in the first round of Wimbledon since Anne Keothavong (now the current Billie Jean King Cup captain for Great Britain) defeated Naomi Broady in 2011.
Grand Slam experience pays off: Raducanu knows what it’s like to have career breakthroughs as a teenager. At age 18, she made her Grand Slam main-draw debut here on home soil at 2021 Wimbledon, and raced to the Round of 16.
Her teenage dream reached a fever pitch in her second Grand Slam main-draw at the 2021 US Open. There, still only 18, she won 10 straight matches to become the first qualifier in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Raducanu continues to excel when kicking off majors. She is now 11-2 in Grand Slam first-round matches throughout her young career.
More to come…