Put Emma Raducanu aside; Katie Boulter is the new tennis hero for Great Britain.
Many believed Emma Raducanu to be the next great tennis player in Great Britain, when she enjoyed Grand Slam success at the US Open in 2021.
Never undervalue the impact of what Raducanu accomplished in Flushing Meadows when he was just 18 years old.
Being the only player to win a major singles championship as a qualifier, she remains alone in this incredible accomplishment that might never be topped.
Upon achieving her goal of being the first female Grand Slam singles champion in British history, Raducanu was named BBC Sports Personality of the Year, made a member of the Order of the British Empire, and granted large endorsement deals.
However, few anticipated what would happen next. Raducanu has mainly struggled with form and injury ever since her New York fairytale and has not won a WTA Tour championship, despite climbing into the world top 10 in July 2022.
After missing nine months of action, Raducanu made her comeback in January. This year, she is focusing on increasing her fitness, with former British player Tim Henman advising the 21-year-old to compete in at least 20 events by the year 2024.
Raducanu has experienced tremendous success early in her career, but she still lacks top-level experience and is continually fine-tuning her setup after frequently switching instructors in her quest to get back to the top of the sport.
Although Raducanu’s current world ranking of No. 250 indicates that she is not nearly at the level to be contending for titles and thrilling fans like Murray did for such a long time, there is still a great deal of interest in everything Raducanu does from a British standpoint.
However, Boulter, a different British player, has seen the space Raducanu left behind and is seizing the chance.
Boulter won her first WTA Tour championship at the Nottingham Open last year, unseating Raducanu as the top-ranked player in the United Kingdom.
The 27-year-old reached the third round of both the US Open and Wimbledon singles, putting on runs that were both career-bests.
Boulter’s relationship with tennis celebrity boyfriend Alex de Minaur has garnered significant media attention, as has her life off the court.
She just achieved a new career high by winning her maiden WTA 500 title by going undefeated at the San Diego Open.
This has generated a lot of excitement ahead of this week’s Indian Wells tournament in California, which is the unofficial fifth Grand Slam.
Despite a new career-high ranking of No. 27, some British fans are disappointed that Boulter will not be seeded for the opening leg of the Sunshine Double.
This is because Boulter will not receive a bye into the second round at Indian Wells since they have chosen to employ the ranking system from last week, when she was ranked No. 49.
Though she won the largest match of her career in San Diego, Boulter is not losing hope. She now has a great chance to go up the rankings even higher because she only has a few WTA Tour points left to defend in the coming months.
