Raducanu pushes Sabalenka in epic late-night encounter

Emma Raducanu is back. That will be scant consolation as she tries to get over the immediate crushing disappointment of this straight-sets defeat to Aryna Sabalenka but should provide comfort when she looks back on her exploits at Wimbledon 2025 in the weeks to come.

- LUKE BAKER

The shadow of that 2021 US Open triumph has loomed large for so long - her exploits as a 19-year-old in New York on those balmy late-summer evenings four years ago defining her. It was somehow the very best and worst thing that could have happened so early in her tennis career.

The injuries, on-court struggles, lack of wins over top 10 opponents and off-court drama were all magnified as an inexperienced player subsequently tried to find her way as a pro. Yet she - and perhaps more pertinently those who watch and support her - have now definitively moved and can enjoy the next phase.

The back injury that forced Raducanu’s withdrawal from the Berlin Open and marred her buildup to this year’s tournament at the All England Club was a forgotten irrelevance as she built on one of her finest performances over former champion Marketa Vondrousova in the previous round to give the best player in the world all she could handle in a bout of classic, late-night Wimbledon drama.

“I had to fight for every point like crazy,” admitted Sabalenka after a 7-6, 6-4 win in exactly two hours. “She pushed me so hard.”

Sabalenka is a force. Her power is unmatched in the women’s game but you don’t get to world No 1 and win three grand slams as she has done with a one-dimensional arsenal. She needed all of her exquisite drop shots and flicked winners to hold off an opponent who proved every bit her equal.

This was probably the best display Raducanu has put in since that 2021 US Open run and while consistency is now the next challenge, this reminded everyone, even in defeat, that she has the ability of a top-five player. She impeccably controlled Sabalenka’s power in a way few can, with deep groundstrokes and pace variations while firing off perfectly-placed winners of her own.