US Open: Emma Raducanu beats Leylah Fernandez to win first Grand Slam

British teenager Emma Raducanu has made history by winning the US Open tennis tournament.

The 18-year-old beat fellow teenager Leylah Fernandez in straight sets in a high quality and thrilling match in New York.

Emma is the youngest Brit to win one of the big tennis tournaments - the Grand Slams - and has also become the first British woman to become a singles champion for 44 years.

What she's done is a huge achievement and has taken the world by surprise.

What's amazing is that just a few months ago she was still at school - this is her first time playing at the US Open and it's only her second big tournament ever!

Remember you can send her your congratulations here.

An epic achievement

Emma won the match in straight sets, 6-4, 6-3 which means she kept up her record of not losing a set in the whole competition.

Unlike her (slightly) more experienced opponent, Emma had to play through the qualifying rounds to get into the main tournament - so she played more matches than anyone else.

She's also the first person to win a Grand Slam (tennis' biggest competitions) after coming through the qualifying rounds.

Emma even fell and cut her leg at the climax of the match which added an extra bit of drama!

No wonder that, after firing down an ace to win and finish off her epic journey, Emma threw herself to the floor in disbelief!

She will take home £1.8m in prize money, rise to 23 in the world rankings and will become the British number one on Monday.

Emma will also know that she has starred in one of the biggest moments in British sporting history - and captured the imagination of the fans at home and in New York.

What Emma said after winning

Emma admitted she does not want to let go of the US Open trophy after her fairytale in New York brought the ultimate happy ending.

"It means everything to hold this trophy and I don't want to let go right now!

"I've always dreamed of winning a Grand Slam. You just say these things. But to have the belief I did, and actually winning, I can't believe it.

"For me, I don't feel absolutely any pressure. I'm still only 18 and I'm just having a free swing at anything that comes my way." she said.

"I first started when I was a little girl, but I think the biggest thing that you have visions of is the winning moment, and going to celebrate with your team, trying to find your way up to the box.

"That's been playing in my head, like, a couple of nights. I've fallen asleep to that... When I came out it was business as usual, one point at a time... I had to fight hard for that first set and keep myself ahead in the second."

Emma also paid tribute to her rival on the final, Leylah Fernandez, herself just 19 years old.

"It shows the future of women's tennis and depth of the game is so great - every player in the draw has a shot at winning any tournament," she said in her on-court interview.

Leylah responded by saying: "The level was extremely high and I hope we play each other in many more tournaments and hopefully finals. Today is going to be hard but Emma played amazing. Congratulations.

"I am very proud of myself and having the crowd has been amazing. Thank you so much New York. Thank you everyone."

The rise & rise of Raducanu

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Two weeks ago, Raducanu had a flight booked back to the UK, just in case she did not come through qualifying in New York. Seventeen days later, she has lifted the trophy!

She did not drop a set en route to the final, despite meeting Olympic champion Belinda Bencic.

And two months ago, Emma was collecting her A-Level results.

In the UK, most people first met Emma at Wimbledon 2021 when she impressed everyone despite having to bow out of her final match when she had breathing difficulties.

In New York, Leylah Fernandez had more of the crowd support, but there were still lots of cheers for Emma too.

And while she's now a favourite sporting start in the UK, she's already been on magazine covers and experts are expecting her to be a major star of the future!

Well done Emma - you smashed it!