By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday September 28, 2021
The BNP Paribas Open lost a two-time Grand Slam champion on Monday, when World No.1 Ash Barty announced her withdrawal. On Tuesday they gained a Grand Slam champion and the WTA’s biggest sensation – 2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu.
The 18-year-old British star was granted a wild card by the tournament.
Raducanu will make her fifth main draw appearance at a tour-level event, with her first three coming at Nottingham, Wimbledon, San Jose and the US Open this year.
Currently ranked 22, Raducanu became the first qualifier to ever win a major title at this year’s US Open as she swept through ten matches without dropping a single set.
She is the first British woman to win a major singles title since Virginia Wade in 1977 and the youngest player to win a major since Maria Sharapova in 2004.
Action at the BNP Paribas Open begins on October 4th.