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Teenagers Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez Match Historic Feat Achieved by Serena Williams and Martina Hingis

Published 09/10/2021, 12:10 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

The second semifinal of the women’s singles category at the US Open saw British teenager Emma Raducanu face 17th seed Maria Sakkari. Despite making just her second appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam, Raducanu has carved out a reputation for winning big matches.

This year’s US Open has been full of upsets, and today was no exception. Earlier today, Canadian teen Leylah Fernandez stunned second seed Aryna Sabalenka to reach her first Grand Slam final. And with an emphatic victory, Raducanu will join the 19-year-old in an unexpected final on Saturday, September 11.

The Briton won her match in straight sets, again, with the scoreline reading 6-1, 6-4.

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Emma Raducanu stuns Maria Sakkari to set up the youngest US Open final in 22 years

Emma served the first game of the first set, holding her serve and then breaking Sakkari’s straight after. In a ridiculous display of dominance from the 18-year-old, she held her serve again and broke Sakkari for a second time to go 4-0 up in the first set. Emma held her serve in the 5th set again, before eventually seeing out the first set 6-1.

Sakkari served the first game in the second set. However, her British opponent broke her serve in the third game of the set to take a crucial 2-1 lead. Although the 17th seed gave a tougher challenge in the set, Raducanu held on to clinch the set 6-4, and a famous win.

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With this victory, the Briton becomes the first ever qualifier to reach the final of a Grand Slam. On Saturday, September 11, Raducanu will make history along with her 19-year-old opponent Leylah Fernandez. Their final in the Arthur Ashe Stadium will be the youngest since the 1999 US Open, where a 17-year-old Serena Williams faced an 18-year-old Martina Hingis.

Williams clinched her first of six US Open titles that year with a 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) victory over the Swiss star.

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Can Raducanu write more history on Saturday?

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While Fernandez has dropped a set in every match since the third round, she has displayed extraordinary talent in beating top-seeded opponents. In fact, the Canadian defeated three players in the Top 10 en route to the final.

However, Raducanu is yet to drop a set in the entire tournament. In addition, she’s yet to face a tiebreaker in the tournament, which shows her immense quality at the young age of 18.

USA Today via Reuters

With the lights of the Ashe set to shine on the teenagers on Saturday, this unprecedented final hangs firmly in the balance. Whether it’s Raducanu or Fernandez who will enter the iconic list of winners, only time will tell.

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WATCH STORY: Serena Williams, Pete Sampras and Others Who Made History at US Open as Teenagers

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Written by:

Sanket Nair

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Sanket Nair is an F1 Author at EssentiallySports. A Sports Management graduate, he is a huge fan of Sebastian Vettel and Daniel Ricciardo and hopes to see Red Bull break Mercedes' dominance and win the World Championship soon. Sanket has been hooked to the sport ever since he watched the battle for the 2010 World Championship go down to the wire at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
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