Emma Raducanu says dominant Brits are pushing for another title after latest Nottingham Open win

Emma Raducanu played out another comfortable win on the centre court of the Nottingham Open to book her place in the quarter-finals. The Brit enjoyed a straight sets win over Ukraine’s Daria Snigur on Thursday afternoon, joining Katie Boulter in the final eight after a 6-2, 6-2 victory.

Snigur took an initial 2-0 lead in the first set but a dominant run from Raducanu as her confidence built saw her sweep a five-game winning streak to claim the set. Showing off some of her best tennis with powerful backhands and strong serves leading to 11 aces, the 21-year-old enjoyed another impressive performance in her 2024 grass-court season.

Snigur is an opponent Raducanu knows well, having played against her at junior level. The 22-year-old from Kyiv became just the second Ukrainian player to be crowned junior champion at Wimbledon back in 2019. Snigur made her WTA Tour debut three years later at the Nottingham Open.

“It was an extremely tricky match, I knew from even before I came on that I needed to be on it today because Daria is a really good player and grass court player especially,” Raducanu said following her victory. “I played with her in the juniors growing up so I know just how tricky she can be to play and how unorthodox she is when playing. It’s really difficult but I’m very happy with how I managed it, especially in the beginning.”

Like Snigur, Raducanu’s senior career started in Nottingham, so returning to the Tennis Centre is always a special occasion for her. The crowd have not disappointed either, getting behind her every shot as she settles into her tennis again following her recent absence.

Prior to her arrival in Nottingham, Raducanu had not played a competitive match since April as she opted to miss the French Open in order to focus on her fitness. The former US Open champion had also gone as many as 713 days without playing on grass as she battled with a number of injuries.

“It was incredible today, I could really hear and feel the support and that was really nice. You know, it’s our turf so we’re here as the Brits, not just me. All of us are doing pretty well in this tournament and we’re trying to take the title home again, one of us.”

Britain were denied a full sweep last year as they won all but the women’s doubles. Andy Murray took home the men’s singles title, while Boulter triumphed in the women’s singles. Jacob Fearnley and Johannus Monday took home the men’s doubles trophy. Raducanu will face either fellow Brit Francesca Jones or Ashlyn Krueger of the USA in the quarter-finals.