Raducanu, Draper lead British Wimbledon hopes

Fans are hoping to see them deep in the tournament

LONDON:

Nothing gets British fans more giddy at Wimbledon than a home favourite making a deep run in the tournament, and with Emma Raducanu back in form and Jack Draper back from injury, expectation levels are set to soar again.

Raducanu became the darling of British tennis with a stunning U.S. Open triumph as a teenage qualifier in 2021 but has struggled to get anywhere near hitting such heights again.

Since then, the 23-year-old's career has been plagued by injuries, illness and a revolving door of coaches and she has only once reached the fourth round of a Slam since her Flushing Meadows fairytale - at Wimbledon in 2024.

Now reunited with Andrew Richardson, the coach she split with shortly after her U.S. Open triumph, Raducanu has shown signs of rediscovering her spark and returning to the free-flowing tennis she was known for.

That was evident at the Queen's Club Championship where she reached the final and lost to Croatia's experienced Donna Vekic - a run that means she will be seeded 30th at Wimbledon.

Draper back from injury

Her decision to withdraw from the Nottingham Open rather than try to build on the momentum of Queen's raised some eyebrows and she skipped Eastbourne too, preferring instead to practise at the All England Club.

Having missed several tournaments this year recovering from a post-viral illness, Raducanu's decision to conserve her energy for the physical and mental strain of Wimbledon is understandable, although there is also a school of thought that a few more wins on grass would have been the perfect tonic. REUTERS