Emma Raducanu’s tenure as top-ranked British female tennis player quickly ends

Emma Raducanu’s return to being the top-ranked British female tennis player didn’t last long after dropping five spots on the updated WTA rankings list and finding herself ranked below Katie Boulter.

On June 16th, Raducanu replaced Boulter as the British No. 1 – that marked the 22-year-old achieving the feat for the first time in two years.

Going into Wimbledon, Raducanu was ranked at No. 40 while Boulter sat at No. 43. Since the 2021 US Open champion had to defend round-of-16 points at The Championships while her fellow compatriot only had second-round points to defend, it was clear that British women’s tennis could get the new No. 1.

While Raducanu did better and made the Wimbledon third round, she still dropped points, while Boulter – who lost in the second round – didn’t lose any points. Now, the 2021 US Open winner is ranked at No. 45 while the 28-year-old is sitting at No. 42.

Raducanu was backed by Aryna Sabalenka to ‘return to the top’
A couple of months after triumphing at the 2021 US Open, the British tennis player also achieved a career-high ranking of No. 10 in the world. However, for the past couple of months, the 22-year-old hasn’t been ranked inside the top-10.

I can’t predict anything, but I’m definitely sure that, maybe not in the months, but in a bit longer period, she’s definitely gonna get back in the top. She’s fighting. She’s playing much better. She’s more consistent. I can see that mentally she’s healthy. That’s really important. I’m pretty sure she’s getting there,” world No. 1 Sabalenka said after Raducanu pished her hard in their Wimbledon third-round match.

Raducanu didn’t play a lot or do much during last year’s North American hard-court swing. Therefore, it won’t be surprising if she soon replaces Boulter and once again comes back to being the highest-ranked British female tennis player.