Britain’s Emma Raducanu produced two superb victories in a day at Queen’s to reach her first grass-court final.<\/p>\n
Raducanu overcame an injury scare to beat Kamilla Rakhimova 6-3 7-5 in her weather-delayed quarter-final early on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n
She returned to Andy Murray Arena a little over two and a half hours later and dispatched highly-rated American teenager Iva Jovic 6-2 6-2.<\/p>\n
The British number one, who went into Queen’s seeking to regain her form after a season disrupted by illness and injury, jumped for joy on sealing her victory as the crowd rose to applaud her.<\/p>\n
In Sunday’s final – which you can watch live on BBC One from 13:15 BST – the 23-year-old will face Croatia’s Donna Vekic, who beat British number three Katie Boulter in straight sets.<\/p>\n
Raducanu has not dropped a set on her run to the final and has thrived on the pressure of being the home favourite, beating two players ranked in the world’s top 20.<\/p>\n
Currently ranked 42 in the world after a disappointing first-round defeat at the French Open, her success this week has boosted her chances of being one of the 32 seeds at Wimbledon, which starts on 29 June.<\/p>\n
It comes after she rehired Andrew Richardson, the man who helped her claim her historic US Open title in 2021, as her coach in May.<\/p>\n
Raducanu has struggled with injuries since that stunning triumph as a teenager in New York but is now one win away from a second career title.<\/p>\n
“It means everything to be doing this here at Queen’s,” she told BBC TV. “The whole day has been electric.<\/p>\n
“This week has been incredible, I really enjoy playing here and that shows in my tennis. <\/p>\n
“Ask any British player and they would love to lift the title here. My team and I have been through some tough moments in the last few months but we have been putting in the hard work and I want to thank them for helping me get into the final.”<\/p>\n
Boulter’s hopes of making it an all-British final were ended with a 6-1 6-3 loss to world number 76 Vekic.<\/p>\n