Emma Raducanu continues to reach milestones and break records following her historic US Open win. The 18-year-old became the first qualifier in history to win a Grand Slam when she lifted the trophy at Flushing Meadows recently, and has since shot up the rankings from world No 338 to world No 22 in as little as three months. She is now making waves off the court, having reached a milestone on Instagram that few players have been able to attain.
Raducanu made history when she became the first qualifier, man or woman, to reach a Grand Slam final at the US Open earlier this month, and went one better by winning the title without dropping a set through three qualifying rounds and seven main-draw matches.
She was also the first player to win the title on just her second appearance at Grand Slam level, and ended a 44-year drought for a female British Grand Slam champion.
The unprecedented triumph made the Bromley teenager something of an overnight sensation, as she became an internationally-recognised name in the sporting world after beating fellow-teen Leylah Annie Fernandez in the US Open final on Saturday September 11.
As well as making a name for herself, the Brit now sits at No 22 in the world in the latest rankings update, having been ranked down at a then-career high of world No 150 coming into the tournament, and way down at No 338 just three months ago.
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It means Raducanu joins an exclusive group of fellow active female tennis players to have surpassed two million followers on the social media platform.
As well as Williams and Osaka, who have 13.6m and 2.8m followers respectively, only Genie Bouchard and Sania Mirza have more with 2.1m and 7.9m respectively.
While all four currently sit ahead of Raducanu in the Instagram follower count, the new world No 22 has seen her followers rise at such a rapid rate that she is expected to surpass Bouchard within days before chasing down Osaka’s figure.
Although Raducanu has been propelled to a new level of superstardom and picked up 1.6m followers since the US Open began, she admitted that she didn’t check her phone during the tournament, and in the aftermath of her victory.
Speaking after her win in New York, she said: “I still haven’t checked my phone! I have absolutely no idea what’s going on outside of the little world that we’re in here. We’ve just been in the quiet room, just enjoying the moment, taking it all in.”
Raducanu has already cemented her new superstar status, as she received a last-minute invitation to the prestigious Met Gala following her triumph and took to the red carpet just 48 hours after winning the US Open.
An invitation to the upcoming James Bond premiere in London at the end of the month also awaits the teenager.
Meanwhile, she has recently been spotted at London Fashion Week events with the likes of British Vogue editor Edward Enninful.
