Wimbledon 2021 tennis - 'She can be a superstar' - Mats Wilander hails Emma Raducanu after Brit's latest win
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Updated 03/07/2021 at 16:12 GMT
Having overcome Marketa Vondrousova, a former Grand Slam finalist, in the second round, British rising star Emma Raducanu produced another remarkable performance as she overcame Sorana Cirstea to continue her remarkable progression at Wimbledon. She will next face another tough test against Ajla Tomljanovic in the fourth round after she beat former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
Emma Raducanu of United Kingdom celebrates at Wimbledon 2021
Image credit: Getty Images
British teenager Emma Raducanu continued her stunning run at Wimbledon 2021 with another upset, this time against Sorana Cirstea, 6-3, 7-5, to reach the fourth round, and Mats Wilander says Britain has a special player.
The 18-year-old, who shocked 2020 French Open finalist Marketa Vondrousova in the second round, produced another nerveless and hugely impressive display to overcome the Romanian on Court One.
Raducanu, who was sitting her A-Levels just two months ago slipped behind early on as Cirstea, the world number 45, established a 3-1 lead in the opening set.
But the Londoner swiftly demonstrated her battling qualities in abundance as she broke straight back to level, then followed that up with another to win five games in succession and claim the first set before taking the second set in thrilling fashion.
The teenager is making her Grand Slam debut, having only made her maiden appearance on the WTA Tour in June, and is ranked number 338th in the world - and Wilander believes Britain has something special.
"Amazing scenes," Wilander told Eurosport at Wimbledon. "She is the real deal, and I am talking about the mindset. An incredible mindset and an incredible mover.
"She played incredibly - she has a great mindset, and just the way she handled it. She had so many break points in that second set - and somehow, like a mature tennis pro who has been on the tour for years - she handled that setback.
I'm telling you, in Great Britain, you have a star that has been born.
"She plays like her idol, Li Na. The forehand is almost an identical copy. She really is a fantastic tennis player and there is nowhere she is going to go but up. She is going to improve and improve.
"The fact that she turned that match around, and Cirstea came back, that is such a confidence boost and such a telling point that she is here to stay.
"She moves incredibly well and she has real strength. She has literally everything. She can be a superstar."
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Emma Raducanu of Great Britain celebrates a point during her Ladies' Singles third Round match against Sorana Cirstea of Romania during Day Six of The Championships - Wimbledon 2021
Image credit: Getty Images
Raducanu said in her post-match interview: "I am so speechless right now. I didn't know what my reaction would be, and then that just happened. I'm so, so grateful for all the support I had today.
"This is by far the biggest court I've played on. I think I coped quite well in the beginning, I just tried to hold my nerve.
"When I was packing to come into the bubble, my parents said, 'Aren't you packing too much match kit?' I think I'm going to have to do some laundry tonight!"
In reaching this match at all, Raducanu became the youngest British woman to reach the Wimbledon third round since Elena Baltacha in 2002. Now she has taken that one step further.
Raducanu will next face another tough test against Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia in the fourth round after she overcame former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
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Watch daily evening highlights of all the best action from Wimbledon on Eurosport 1, plus the men's and women's finals live on Eurosport 2. All coverage is also available to stream via eurosport.co.uk and the Eurosport app.
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