Emma Raducanu stormed into a second WTA Tour final of 2026 with a straight-sets win over Iva Jovic in the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club.
The British No 1 made light of a schedule which saw her play two matches on the same day, following up a quarter-final victory over Kamilla Rakhimova by overpowering teenage American Jovic 6-2 6-2.
And a relaxed Raducanu later declared that “a new Emma” has emerged as she continues to put her poor form and health problems from earlier in the year behind her.
Her opponent in the final, Croatia’s Donna Vekic, denied the home crowd an all-British affair as she breezed past Katie Boulter in the other semi-final.
But the impressive Raducanu now has the chance to crown her recent resurgence under the guidance of coach Andrew Richardson on Sunday with a second title of her career.
Victory over sixth seed Jovic – her second over a top-20 opponent at the tournament – should give her every confidence she can do just that, and in her on-court interview afterwards Raducanu thanked the crowd for helping her “stick out some really tough moments” during a match whose competitive nature was not truly reflected in the one-sided scoreline.
But it was the British No 1 who showed the greater ability and mental toughness in the key moments, not least during a pivotal fifth game of the second set which saw her claw her way back from 15-40 before holding off an aggressive Jovic to hold for a 4-1 lead which ultimately proved unassailable.
Raducanu’s victory over Iva Jovic was her second over a top-20 player at Queen’s
How Raducanu reached Sunday’s final
Raducanu took to the court for the second time in a few hours with strapping on her leg following a slip during her quarter-final victory over Rakhimova.
Neither the treatment required, nor a brief interruption for a Red Arrows flypast marking the Trooping the Colour ceremony in central London, could stop her wrapping up a 6-3 7-5 win in that match, and she resumed with similar confidence against Jovic.
An assured hold of serve set the tone for an opening set which saw her break for a 3-1 lead and again as Jovic served to stay in the set at 2-5 – two games after the 18-year-old had called a medical timeout for treatment on what appeared to be a problem with her foot.
Jovic left the court at the end of the set and took a while to get going in the second, some sloppy errors contributing to an easy Raducanu hold before a double fault gifted her opponent a break and a 2-0 lead.
Jovic required treatment during the first set of the semi-final
But from there she began to show why she has risen through the rankings, breaking back to love, only to drop serve again immediately as Raducanu maintained her levels of athleticism and groundstrokes off both wings.
Jovic netted at break point for 3-4, Raducanu instead moving one game from a victory which she closed out ruthlessly, an overhead winner teeing up two match points, the first of which she took.
After going three months without a win, much of which was spent on the sidelines, Raducanu has now won four back-to-back on home territory as her renewed partnership with her US Open-winning coach Richardson continues to bear fruit.
‘The new Emma’
Asked after the match whether ‘the old Emma’ was now back, Raducanu replied: “I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily the old Emma, I think it’s the new Emma.
“Because if you take all the lessons and experience, all the different ups and downs, you understand a lot more what’s going on and what works for you, so I’d say that I’m back and better.”
She was less forthcoming on her physical condition when asked whether there were any after-effects from her fall earlier in the day.
“I think it’s amazing what adrenaline and support can do,” she said, “and the mind as well.
“So right now I still have to kind of assess, but yeah, I know we’re going to do everything we possibly can for one more tomorrow.”
Speaking to the BBC on court earlier, she made a point of acknowledging her team, saying: “Results haven’t been going our way, but we’ve been putting in the work day in, day out and I want to take the opportunity to thank them.”
Boulter brought back to earth
Boulter, meanwhile, was unable to reach the heights of her career-best win over Elena Rybakina on Friday night as she proved no match for the experienced Vekic in a 6-1 6-3 defeat.
Vekic reached the main draw as a lucky loser but was too strong for an opponent whose quarter-final finished late on Friday evening after a two hour 40-minute slog against the world No 2.
Katie Boulter leaves the court after losing to Donna Vekic in the semi-final at Queen’s
The Croat dropped just six points on her serve in the match, breezing to the opening set and securing a break in the third game of the second to seize total control.
A former Wimbledon semi-finalist, she broke again in the ninth game to seal victory, taking her second match point with a backhand winner.
Vekic endeared herself to Boulter’s home crowd by writing ‘I love London’ on a television camera in celebration and afterwards told the BBC: “I love this surface. I love this city.
“I spent a lot of time training here when I was younger, and I have a lot of friends here. It feels like a second home.”
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