‘Nervous' Emma Raducanu enjoys win with Katie Boulter in rare doubles outing
Raducanu had before this played doubles just once, partnering Clara Tauson in round one of the 2022 Washington Open, and alongside Boulter was fully backed by the home crowd on the packed and more intimate Court One.
The WTA 500 event marks the first time in 52 years Queen's has hosted women's tennis, and while the pairing of British number one Boulter and number two Raducanu were not quite ready to submit their entries to Wimbledon, there were hugs and fist-pumps aplenty as they got their grass court seasons underway.
Friends who win together 🤗@WTA | #HSBCChampionships pic.twitter.com/UNMrBgztBs
— LTA (@the_LTA) June 9, 2025
'I was actually very nervous before the match,' said 2021 US Open champion Raducanu, who has drawn a to be determined qualifier for her opening singles match. 'I don't know if you could tell, but, yeah, probably more nervous than the singles, because I just didn't necessarily know what to do.
'I'm really happy once we got out there, Katie made me feel so comfortable, and I'm just so pleased to get a win.'
This Queen's partnership, Raducanu revealed, came 'spontaneously', after a few close calls where she and Boulter nearly joined forces at Madrid, Paris and Miami.
Asked it could extend as far as Wimbledon, Raducanu replied: 'We haven't spoken about it. It worked pretty well, so we're just going to keep on trying to do as best we can this week.'
Boulter joked: 'Scrap what she said – we're going for the Wimbledon title! No, I'm just kidding.'
The British pair claimed an early break in the first set and extended their lead to 4-2 before Wu and Jiang drew level at 4-4.
Boulter and Raducanu broke back and eventually claimed the opening set, converting their second set point.
Momentum in their favour, the Britons made quicker work of the pair from China and Chinese Taipei in the second set, sealed emphatically by Raducanu's volley.
Fans on social media were quick to complain that the match was not available to watch in full on the BBC, who did occasionally cut to the British pair but focused on the action on the newly-christened Andy Murray Arena, where the three-time grand slam winner was honoured in a morning ceremony.
The PA news agency understands contractual considerations between a number of stakeholders – including the WTA and LTA – contributed to the contest being held on the smaller court.
PA has contacted the BBC for comment.
Raducanu did not mind the venue, adding: 'I think sometimes on the smaller courts you get a bigger feel for the match, the atmosphere and the environment, because it's a lot closer, more intimate, and you hear the support more.
'For me, I love playing on those smaller, outside courts where you really feel the support and the crowd gets into it. I was filling my bottle up, and I was literally having a chat in the stands because that's how close it is.'
Elsewhere, British number three Sonay Kartal got her singles campaign off to a winning start with a 6-1 3-6 6-3 victory over Australia's world number 16 Daria Kasatkina.
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Sir Andy Murray not ruling out return to coaching despite Novak Djokovic split
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Scottish Sun
34 minutes ago
- Scottish Sun
Tennis fans slam BBC live coverage of Queen's after Emma Raducanu snub ahead of Wimbledon
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TENNIS fans slammed the BBC for snubbing live coverage of Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter's doubles debut. The all-star British duo teamed up for the first time at Queen's in the opening grass-court event ahead of Wimbledon. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter played their first competitive doubles match together Credit: Getty 3 The British pairing beat Fang-Hsien Wu and Xinyu Jiang 6-4 6-2 Credit: PA But despite the BBC holding the rights to the tournament and the euphoria around tennis after yesterday's epic French Open final, they opted against spotlighting two of GB's biggest names and instead only showed the singles action on the main show court - now called the Andy Murray Arena. While Sonay Kartal, Jodie Burrage and two-time Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova were live on TV, that meant that Raducanu and Boulter - second up on Court 1 - were overlooked on BBC Two. And their match against Fang-Hsien Wu and Xinyu Jiang was not available for British tennis fans to watch on either the red button or iPlayer. BBC presenter Isa Guha said: "Unfortunately, we won't be able to show you this match because we're focused on Andy Murray Arena, but we will be bringing you updates throughout the course of the afternoon." READ MORE ON TENNIS MIC MY DAY Wimbledon finals to be shown on new TV channel after 88 years of BBC coverage But wannabe viewers were not happy. One moaned: "Errrrr you've got two Brits linking up in the doubles - don't you think that might have been of an interest to the British viewers?" Another blasted: "You have the British women 1 and 2 playing together in doubles and you're not showing it? Make it make sense!! So frustrating!!" A third added: "You just showed a clip of Court 1 where Emma and Katie are starting their match; so why not show the match as a second option or one court on iPlayer and one on BBC Two? Very frustrating!" CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS A fourth complained: "Literally just showed us a clip of it why can't we watch it?!!!!" A fifth fumed: "Absolutely ridiculous you're not showing Boulter/Raducanu in doubles." Katie Boulter destroys tennis star fiance Alex de Minaur in four words after newly-engaged couple lose in doubles And a final user typed: "Why isn't Court 1 on BBC iPlayer though? Can't watch Boultercanu?" Boulter and Raducanu - nicknamed Boulteranu by some on social media - ran out 6-4 6-2 winners in 71 minutes, laughing and high-fiving their way to victory in joyful scenes in front of the 1,000-seater stand. The match was Raducanu's second WTA doubles match of her career - and a first win. Quizzed if they would team up again at Wimbledon, the former US Open champion downplayed their ambitions. Raducanu - delighted to have overcome any injury concerns as she ended the match with a volley - insisted: 'It's a spontaneous thing, we're just trying to do the best we can this week. "We thought about it in Madrid, Miami and Paris. 'Moving to the grass, which is a very different surface, it helps us get a feel of serving, returning and playing some points." Tennis stars' new careers PLENTY of tennis stars have stayed involved in the sport since retiring. But others pursued very different careers. Here are some of the best… I reached French Open and Wimbledon finals as a teenager but I quit to become a nun I won Wimbledon mixed doubles with my sister but got fed up with English weather so now run luxury B&B I was tipped for stardom aged 12 but retrained to become high-flying lawyer I earned £9m and won French Open before setting up bistro with Brazilian model girlfriend I'm last Frenchman to win Roland Garros, now I'm singer with six albums hitting No1 in charts I'm former world No1 but quit aged 29 - instead I went on to play professional poker and golf I was destined for the top but swapped lobs for labs as award-winning Harvard physicist But partner Boulter interjected: 'Scrap what she said - we're going for the Wimbledon title! "No, just kidding… we haven't thought about that. "We both return very well and have great volleys, so if one of us hits a good ball we can capitalise on that. "I'm very confident that Emma is going to put the ball away if I hit a good shot." World No37 Raducanu - who admitted she is still "wary" in public after he stalker hell - faces Cristina Bucsa in her opening singles match on Tuesday. Boulter, three places higher than her partner in the WTA rankings, takes on Ajla Tomljanovic. SunSport has contacted the BBC for comment on the snub, which comes after news that the BBC will have to share broadcast rights to the singles finals at Wimbledon with TNT Sports for the next five years. 3 Raducanu had only played one WTA doubles match before Credit: Getty
The Sun
34 minutes ago
- The Sun
Tennis fans slam BBC live coverage of Queen's after Emma Raducanu snub ahead of Wimbledon
TENNIS fans slammed the BBC for snubbing live coverage of Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter's doubles debut. The all-star British duo teamed up for the first time at Queen's in the opening grass-court event ahead of Wimbledon. 3 But despite the BBC holding the rights to the tournament and the euphoria around tennis after yesterday's epic French Open final, they opted against spotlighting two of GB's biggest names and instead only showed the singles action on the main show court - now called the Andy Murray Arena. While Sonay Kartal, Jodie Burrage and two-time Wimbledon champ Petra Kvitova were live on TV, that meant that Raducanu and Boulter - second up on Court 1 - were overlooked on BBC Two. And their match against Fang-Hsien Wu and Xinyu Jiang was not available for British tennis fans to watch on either the red button or iPlayer. BBC presenter Isa Guha said: "Unfortunately, we won't be able to show you this match because we're focused on Andy Murray Arena, but we will be bringing you updates throughout the course of the afternoon." But wannabe viewers were not happy. One moaned: "Errrrr you've got two Brits linking up in the doubles - don't you think that might have been of an interest to the British viewers?" Another blasted: "You have the British women 1 and 2 playing together in doubles and you're not showing it? Make it make sense!! So frustrating!!" A third added: "You just showed a clip of Court 1 where Emma and Katie are starting their match; so why not show the match as a second option or one court on iPlayer and one on BBC Two? Very frustrating!" CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS A fourth complained: "Literally just showed us a clip of it why can't we watch it?!!!!" A fifth fumed: "Absolutely ridiculous you're not showing Boulter/Raducanu in doubles." Katie Boulter destroys tennis star fiance Alex de Minaur in four words after newly-engaged couple lose in doubles And a final user typed: "Why isn't Court 1 on BBC iPlayer though? Can't watch Boultercanu?" Boulter and Raducanu - nicknamed Boulteranu by some on social media - ran out 6-4 6-2 winners in 71 minutes, laughing and high-fiving their way to victory in joyful scenes in front of the 1,000-seater stand. The match was Raducanu's second WTA doubles match of her career - and a first win. Quizzed if they would team up again at Wimbledon, the former US Open champion downplayed their ambitions. Raducanu - delighted to have overcome any injury concerns as she ended the match with a volley - insisted: 'It's a spontaneous thing, we're just trying to do the best we can this week. "We thought about it in Madrid, Miami and Paris. 'Moving to the grass, which is a very different surface, it helps us get a feel of serving, returning and playing some points." But partner Boulter interjected: 'Scrap what she said - we're going for the Wimbledon title! "No, just kidding… we haven't thought about that. "We both return very well and have great volleys, so if one of us hits a good ball we can capitalise on that. "I'm very confident that Emma is going to put the ball away if I hit a good shot." World No37 Raducanu - who admitted she is still "wary" in public after he stalker hell - faces Cristina Bucsa in her opening singles match on Tuesday. Boulter, three places higher than her partner in the WTA rankings, takes on Ajla Tomljanovic. SunSport has contacted the BBC for comment on the snub, which comes after news that the BBC will have to share broadcast rights to the singles finals at Wimbledon with TNT Sports for the next five years. Wimbledon ditching line judges a double fault for British tennis By Joshua Jones THE absence of line judges at Wimbledon will be a sad sight. For as long as I can remember, the men and women decked out in their Ralph Lauren outfits have been part of the furniture at the All England Club. Yes, they provided some mild entertainment on the court when one would call "fault" with plenty of extra, and unnecessary, gusto and volume that boomed around Centre Court, prompting a snigger from the fans. Then there was the ongoing game of dodgeball they had to play when a big serve nailed a mammoth ace down the line and they had to take rapid evasive action or take a whack to the top of the head. And challenges provided some audience participation, excitedly joining in the clapping countdown before the inevitable "oooh" when the graphic showed just how close the ball was to landing in or out. Purely objectively, Wimbledon's decision to replace line judges with Hawk-Eye Live makes total sense. The accuracy and consistency of calls in real-time will speed things up, save time and should mark the end of arguments over the tight incorrect calls - well, until the technology malfunctions. And Wimbledon's hand was somewhat forced to ditch tradition for their standing in tennis. The Australian Open and US Open already use electronic line calling and the ATP Tour is adopting Hawk-Eye Live across all of its tournaments from 2025. Wimbledon's refusal to comply would leave them lagging behind and exposed to the threat of needless controversy over human error. But the impact - as is so often the case in these decisions - has ramifications further down, below the surface with very little impact on Wimbledon's Championships or the players. It is on the line judges themselves. Approximately 300 officials - aged from 18 to 80 - covered more than 650 matches at Wimbledon. A fraction travel internationally with the circuit but the vast majority of those are part-time line judges based in the UK, earning up to £180 per day to work at the prestigious tournament and their chance to play their part at Wimbledon. For many, they will help out at British tournaments throughout the year, spurred on by the possibility of taking to the lawns of the All England Club. But it is understood many of those officials would be reluctant to work at the lower-level tournaments without the carrot of Wimbledon dangling in the summer. That in turn will put a major stumbling block in the pathway for British tennis umpires, who grind up through the ranks to reach the pinnacle of the sport. Like football with referees, tennis needs umpires and line judges. So the inability to call "out" at Wimbledon could prove to be a major "fault" for the future of the UK's tennis officials and therefore the state of the sport on these shores.
