EMMA RADUCANU has reached her first final since her US Open triumph in 2021 after seeing off Oleksandra Oliynykova at the Transylvania Open.
The British star, 23, pulled off one of the greatest shocks in tennis history by becoming the first ever qualifier to win a Grand Slam.
She has struggled to reproduce that incredible form in the four-and-a-half-years since, with injuries disrupting her progress.
But Raducanu is now celebrating one of her best moments in recent memory after edging into the Transylvania Open final.
She secured a 7-5, 3-6, 6-3 win over Oliynykova and had to dig deep at times.
Her Ukrainian rival frustrated her with plenty of moon balls and slices and Raducanu looked shattered by the end.
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She missed two match points at 5-3 in the final set before saving two break points and then eventually clinching her hard-fought victory.
Raducanu paid tribute to her “tricky” opponent Oliynykova and thanked the fans for cheering her on.
She said: “What an incredible match. I think all props to my opponent today.
“She played incredible, makes it so tricky to put any ball past her. You think it’s past her, and then the ball is on your baseline or on your sideline, so it’s so difficult.
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“I’m just most proud of how I competed, how I came back in the third set, how I managed the match.
“I honestly don’t know if I could have done it without everyone’s support.”
Raducanu will play Romanian home favourite Sorana Cirstea in Saturday’s final.
It was the first time Raducanu has won a match in three sets since beating Ann Li at Eastbourne in June.
Her career has been littered with setbacks and fitness woes since winning the US Open.
She split with an eighth coach of her career last month following her Australian Open exit as she parted ways with Francis Roig.
After her second-round exit in Melbourne to Anastasia Potapova, Raducanu appeared to suggest she had a difference of opinion about her playstyle with Roig.
She said: I want to be playing a different way. The misalignment with how I’m playing right now and how I want to be playing is something I want to work on.”
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