‘Impressive’ Emma Raducanu is the best player in Britain again (for now)

QUEEN’S CLUB — It might only be for a matter of days, but after a two-year wait, it is something to savour: Emma Raducanu is the British No 1 again.

Tennis rankings do not technically move live on the women’s tour, and are only officially updated on Monday mornings in typically arcane protocol, but as things stand, Raducanu has more points than previous incumbent for the last two years, Katie Boulter.

It is another milestone in the lengthy recovery journey that Raducanu has been on since undergoing surgery on both wrists and an ankle two years ago – a break from the game that cost her the national top spot.

Her ranking sank to 301, and she was forced to rely on wildcards and graft to climb her way back up the ladder. As of Tuesday’s 6-1, 6-2 victory over Cristina Bucsa of Spain, she is now provisionally up to world No 37, her highest mark since August 2022 and two places above Boulter, who beat Ajla Tomljanovic in three sets just before Raducanu’s match on the newly christened Andy Murray Arena.

“Really?” was Raducanu’s first reaction to moving ahead of Boulter, her doubles partner this week who started the year nearly 40 places ahead of her.

“[But] the tournament is still young, and Katie can go on a rip this week as well.

“Honestly, it’s nice in a way having something to chase at No 1, but we have such a great relationship that it’s a very healthy competition.”

Raducanu insisted that she had come into this week with low expectations having suffered with back spasms during her preparation for the grass-court season, but was utterly dominant against Bucsa, to whom she had lost a gruelling three-hour match in Singapore back in February.

The Brit was still expected to beat the world No 112 this time around, despite the history between them, and delivered on those expectations with her joint-biggest win for three years.

Excellent @EmmaRaducanu 🫡

Starting her summer on the grass with a strong win!@WTA | #HSBCChampionships pic.twitter.com/FaIGNA0scP

— HSBC Championships (@QueensTennis) June 10, 2025

“What was so impressive is the way she set the tone right from the start. She imposed her game on Bucsa. There wasn’t a lot that her opponent could do against her,” said Annabel Croft.

“The most impressive performance of any of the players that we’ve witnessed in the tournament so far. Everything looked so smooth.”

Croft was a British No 1 herself, and also a member of the group who last formed a trio of women from these shores ranked inside the top 50 back in the 1980s: Raducanu, Boulter and Sonay Kartal, victorious on Monday, are the modern version of Croft, Jo Durie and Anne Hobbs.

There is no doubt that success breeds success and that all three of the current top-50 players benefit from each other’s presence: Raducanu and Kartal grew up playing against each other, while Boulter, 28, is a more experienced voice. But the “mother of the house” is 33-year-old Heather Watson, who bagged a rare tour singles win by beating Yulia Putintseva 6-4, 6-3.

Last ranked inside the top 50 five years ago, she remembers well what it was like to be flying the flag alone.

“I remember through my whole career, whether it was Jo [Konta] and me or me and Laura [Robson, now retired along with Konta], it was always just two people sort of spurring each other along. Usually there was quite a big gap, even between the two people,” Watson said.

“Then you have those three that you just mentioned in the top 50 who are so close in ranking and doing so well. They’re all spurring each other along and spurring everybody else along. And it’s the best women’s tennis has been in my whole career.

“I actually appreciate it more now when I get introduced as former British No 1, or I don’t think I really appreciated it enough at the time what I had achieved.”

Raducanu knows as well as anyone how temporary success in tennis can be and will savour every victory this summer. The British public hope this routine win is the first of many.