Fiend at Court Unplugged
Emma Raducanu’s professional tennis ranking has risen meteorically this year. That should not be much of a surprise as breakout performances at Wimbledon and the US Open earned her two fairly significant chunks of WTA rankings points. Additionally, her US Open performance was both a rankings point record and anomaly. Raducanu is guaranteed to lose ranking points at the 2022 US Open, even if she successfully defends her title. The situation is unprecedented.
Heading into Wimbledon this year, Raducanu was ranked 338. The points she earned by reaching the round of 16 at Wimbledon propelled her up to 179. Raducanu played 3 tournaments between Wimbledon and the US Open which earned her a smattering of WTA Rankings points. The following table summarizes Raducanu’s ranking points earned between Wimbledon and the US Open this year.
| Tournament | Level | Performance | Points | Ranking |
| Wimbledon | Grand Slam | Round of 16 | 240 | 179 |
| Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic | WTA 500 | Round 1 | 1 | 184 |
| Landisville, PA USA | ITF/USTA $100k | Quarter Finals | 31 | 174 |
| WTA Chicago 125 | WTA 125 | Finalist | 95 | 150 |
| US Open | Grand Slam | Winner | 2040 | 23 |
The winner of the US Open receives 2000 WTA rankings points. However, a player who participates in qualifying earns additional points for that part of the tournament. Raducanu earned 40 points in qualifying, which brings her total up to 2040 for the event. Raducanu is a lock for direct entry into the US Open main draw next year and can only earn a maximum of 2000 points for the tournament next year.
As the only qualifier in history to go on and win a Grand Slam event, Raducanu also became the only player to earn 2040 WTA rankings points for a single tournament. It is a record that can be tied, but never broken under the current ranking points system.
- Emma Raducanu, wta.com, viewed 9/17/2021.
- WTA Rankings Points Explained, wta.com, viewed 9/17/2021.
Another interesting thing about this meteoric rise … I don’t think Raducanu has technically won a pure WTA tour level match. She has leap-frogged with ITF/WTA “challenger” wins and ITF grand slam wins. Truly a bizarre climb.