2021 US Open – Women's Singles Final

The 2021 US Open Women's Singles final was the championship tennis match of the women's singles tournament at the 2021 US Open, contested by two unseeded players, qualifier Emma Raducanu and 73rd-ranked Leylah Fernandez. The match was notable for being the first time that a qualifier had ever advanced to the final of a major, for being the first all-teenage major final since the 1999 US Open, and for being the first major final where both finalists were born in the 21st century. Fernandez had defeated four players ranked in the top 20 (three of whom were in the top five) to reach the final: Naomi Osaka (also the defending champion), Angelique Kerber, Elina Svitolina, and Aryna Sabalenka. Meanwhile, Raducanu beat two seeds, 11th seed and Tokyo 2020 gold medallist Belinda Bencic, and 17th seed Maria Sakkari, and had advanced through all her matches, including qualifiers, without dropping a set.

Background

Raducanu and Fernandez had never met on the professional tour before the final, but Raducanu had defeated Fernandez at the 2018 Wimbledon girls' singles event. The two met in the second round, with Raducanu winning 6–2, 6–4; Raducanu went on to lose to Iga Świątek in the quarterfinals. Entering the US Open final, it was by far both players' best record at a Grand Slam tournament. Before the US Open, Fernandez's best result was at the 2020 French Open, where she defeated 31st seed Magda Linette and Polona Hercog before losing to Petra Kvitová in straight sets in the third round. Earlier in the 2021 season, Fernandez had won her first WTA Tour title at the 2021 Monterrey Open. She entered the US Open ranked as the world No. 73. Fernandez began her tournament by beating both Ana Konjuh and Kaia Kanepi in straight sets. She then went on to successively defeat third seed and defending champion Naomi Osaka, 16th seed and 2016 champion Angelique Kerber, fifth seed Elina Svitolina, and second seed Aryna Sabalenka, all in three-set matches.

Meanwhile, 2021 was Raducanu's first season on the WTA Tour, having lost her debut tour-level match at the 2021 Nottingham Open against Harriet Dart. She had won three ITF titles between May 2018 and December 2019. Raducanu's best major result prior to the US Open was at the 2021 Wimbledon Championships, her major debut. Entering as a wildcard and home player, Raducanu impressively reached the fourth round by beating Vitalia Diatchenko, Markéta Vondroušová, and Sorana Cîrstea, before retiring in the second set against Ajla Tomljanović. She entered the US Open's qualifying tournament ranked as the world No. 150. Raducanu was seeded 31st in the qualifying rounds, and beat Bibiane Schoofs, Mariam Bolkvadze, and 4th seed Mayar Sherif, all in straight sets. Initially scheduled to play 13th seed Jennifer Brady in the first round of the main draw, before Brady withdrew, Raducanu instead met Stefanie Vögele and beat her in straight sets. She went on to win matches against Zhang Shuai, Sara Sorribes Tormo and Shelby Rogers before beating 11th seed Belinda Bencic in the quarterfinals and 17th seed Maria Sakkari in the semifinals, also all in straight sets. Raducanu's straight-set wins made her the favorite for the title entering the final. In contrast, at the start of the tournament betting odds for Raducanu were 400–1, implying a 0.2% chance of success.

Match

The match began at 4.22 p.m. and lasted 1 hour and 51 minutes, ending at 6.13 p.m. Raducanu won the match, 6–4, 6–3. With the win, she completed a run to the title without dropping a set en route.

With the result, Raducanu became the new British No. 1, surpassing Johanna Konta, and entered the world's top 30 for the first time in her career. Fernandez moved up 45 places into a career-high of world No. 28.

Impact

In the United Kingdom, the match was watched by an estimated 9.2 million people. Amazon Prime Video held exclusive broadcast rights to the US Open in the UK, however, a last-minute deal enabled Channel 4 to simultaneously broadcast the match on free-to-air television. According to ESPN, the match attracted a bigger audience in the United States than the men's final (despite the storyline there of Novak Djokovic's quest to complete the Grand Slam), with an estimated 2.44 million viewers compared to 2.05 million for the men's match.

In winning the US Open, Raducanu became the first qualifier in the Open Era to win a major, across either the men's or women's tours. She was the first British woman to win a major since Virginia Wade's win over Betty Stöve at the 1977 Wimbledon Championships; Wade had herself won the US Open in 1968, against Billie Jean King. Raducanu became the second active British player to be a major champion, along with Andy Murray, who won three men's singles major titles between 2012 and 2016. Raducanu became a popular figure in the UK, having already received much attention for her Wimbledon run. She received congratulatory messages from notable figures including Queen Elizabeth II, Catherine, Princess of Wales, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Raducanu later received an MBE owing to her win in the 2022 New Year Honours, and was received by Charles III in November 2022. The win served as a catalyst for increased government funding to tennis in the UK, with culture secretary Nadine Dorries promising £30 million in funding a few weeks after her win, in order to improve the quality of and access to tennis courts and coaching across the country.

Fernandez also received a significant amount of attention, particularly for her wins over three top-five players to reach the final. She became the third woman and fourth player overall representing Canada to reach a major final, after Bianca Andreescu at the 2019 US Open, Milos Raonic at the 2016 Wimbledon Championships, and Eugenie Bouchard at the 2014 Wimbledon Championships. Additionally Fernandez and Raducanu (who was born in Canada and emigrated to Great Britain aged 2), became the sixth and seventh Canadian-born players to play a major final, including Greg Rusedski, who represented Great Britain at the 1997 US Open and Mary Pierce, who represented France in several major finals. Fernandez was congratulated by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and was also congratulated by Elizabeth II.

Statistics

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:2021 US Open - Women's Singles final
2021 US Open (tennis)
September 2021 sports events in the United States
US Open (tennis) finals
Women's sports matches
Tennis matches at Grand Slam tournaments