Britain’s No. 3 Emma Raducanu has been inspired by England’s national football team this fortnight—on and off the lawns of the All England Club—as she powered her way to the third round at Wimbledon.
In the first round, Raducanu joked about “winning ugly” after her topsy-turvy 7-6 (0), 6-3 win over Renata Zarazua, and made English soccer legend David Beckham grin with pride as he watched on from the Royal Box. Her Centre Court victory came a day after England’s own 2-1 nail-biter against Slovakia, which saw the Three Lions advance to the quarterfinals of the 2024 European Championship.
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It was a different story on Wednesday, as Raducanu returned to the third round with a 6-1, 6-2 rout of Elise Mertens—her first time reaching that stage at a Grand Slam event since her surprise victory at the 2021 US Open.
Off the court, the Bromley native has been keeping the Three Lions close to her heart, too… literally.