Emma Raducanu is set to jump back into the top 100 of the WTA Rankings after reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon with another impressive victory.
The British star and 2021 US Open champion had not dropped a set across her first two matches at SW19, beating Renata Zarazua before demolishing the experienced Elise Mertens.
And Raducanu was in imperious form again out on Centre Court, defeating ninth seed Maria Sakkari 6-2, 6-3 in a rematch of their Flushing Meadows semi-final three years ago.
Raducanu said: “I think today was really up there with the most fun I’ve had on a tennis court.
“I really enjoyed every single moment and I think I was just telling myself: ‘How many times in your life are you going to get the opportunity to play in front of a full Centre Court?’ I’m really grateful for the support.
“I think I’m most proud of how I was just so focused, so determined in every single point and every single moment. I knew playing Maria, she’s a top-10 opponent, in a way I came in with a free swing.
“But she’s so tough, she has amazing weapons, and I knew I had to battle quite hard. I tried to just not let the scoreline affect me, having break points and losing them – you just have to play every point like it could be your last.”
Remarkably, having not sealed a top-10 week before last week, she has now picked up two in her last two events – backing up her victory over Jessica Pegula in Eastbourne.
It is also the first time since her US Open victory that Raducanu has reached the second week of a Slam, and the first time she has done so at Wimbledon since her breakthrough at the event in 2021.
She will face New Zealand qualifier Lulu Sun for a place in a second Grand Slam quarter-final this Sunday, but another significant achievement looks all but confirmed.
The WTA Live Rankings project that the 21-year-old will leap at least 43 spots up the rankings post-Wimbledon, with a return to the top 100 likely to prove a huge boost.
That will ensure she can enter the US Open directly, without needing to qualify or rely on a wildcard, and will also secure entry to more WTA-level tournaments.
Raducanu, who reached a career-high of tenth in July 2022, has no points to defend for the rest of the season, and a jump towards the upper echelons of the rankings looks more than likely based on current form.
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