Emma Raducanu’s grass campaign is off to a phenomenal start in front of her home crowd at Queen’s Club. She’s reached her second final of 2026, but her path wasn’t easy. The Brit’s matches were affected by rain delays, and she was forced to play her quarterfinal and her semifinal just hours apart on Saturday.
Despite the inconvenience, Raducanu rose to the occasion, securing two straight-set wins to confirm her place in Sunday’s showdown.
Emma Raducanu Reaches First Queen’s Club Final
A lot has been said about Emma Raducanu’s young career. The Brit became an overnight sensation when she created history at the 2021 US Open as the first-ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam. However, her subsequent results fell short of expectations. The 23-year-old also struggled with injuries and illnesses.
Raducanu reached her first final since New York at this year’s Transylvania Open, but she simultaneously fell ill and was eventually sidelined for a significant period. The Brit had a rather forgettable return to competition on clay, with no wins and two losses.
She’s, however, turned the tide on grass. Raducanu, who secured four wins to reach the Queen’s Club final, has yet to drop a set. She’s beaten the likes of Anna Blinkova (6-0, 6-3), Sorana Cîrstea (6-4, 6-2), Kamilla Rakhimova (6-3, 7-5), and Iva Jovic (6-2, 6-2).
After her semifinal against sixth seed Jovic, Raducanu said, “It was tricky because we (Raducanu and her team) spent two days pretty much waiting around. It was long days. We got called off pretty late.”
Raducanu won her first match on June 9, but her second match faced a rain delay and was ultimately moved to June 12. The same day, she was also scheduled to compete against Rakhimova in the quarterfinal, but the jam-packed schedule forced organizers to push her match to Saturday.
The Brit won her quarterfinal in straight sets, but she suffered a fall mid-match, fueling concerns about her fitness against an in-form and well-rested Jovic later on the same day. Raducanu, however, shared a different perspective.
“Having to play two matches today was a real physical challenge, and I’m really proud of how I overcame that with the help of my team.”
“I knew playing Iva, she’s one of the most in-form players right now on the tour, so I think having that match and the first one in the morning did help in some ways because I had a better feel of the court rather than going straight in.”
Unlike Raducanu, Jovic was able to complete her quarterfinal on Friday. But the former said that her first match on Saturday helped her get accustomed to the court’s conditions. “Maybe it worked in my advantage, but it easily could have gone the other way, and with the slip, especially.”
The one-time Grand Slam champion played sublime tennis to make Jovic uncomfortable throughout the match. “I knew I just had to commit to my shots, and there was only one way to win today, which was play my game and execute it. I’m really proud of how I did that,” she said.
Emma Raducanu will enjoy overwhelming crowd support as she takes on lucky loser Donna Vekić in Sunday’s final. She’s chasing her career’s second title at Queen’s Club.
