ANDY MURRAY has hailed Emma Raducanu’s “very special” US Open triumph and welcomed it as a massive boost for British tennis.
The three-time major champion said his compatriot’s success in New York showed what tennis insiders had known for a while – that she was “really, really good”.
Raducanu became the first qualifier ever to win a Grand Slam title when she overcame Canada’s Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 on Saturday.
The victory saw her become the first British woman to lift a major singles title since Virginia Wade in 1977.
Murray, who won the 2012 US Open, has spent time mentoring Raducanu.
He is understood to have sent a private message of congratulations to the 18-year-old and spoke to her in person while they were both competing in New York.
Now Murray has spoken publicly to heap praise on the teenager and call on tennis bosses to capitalise on her success.
He said: “It was incredible what she did there.
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“What she did in New York was very special, a huge boost for British tennis and gives hopefully the governing bodies an opportunity to capitalise on that and get more and more kids involved in the sport.
“It’s great what she did and a huge opportunity for British tennis now.”
The words come after it was revealed Raducanu split with Murray’s father-in-law as coach on the eve of her debut at Flushing Meadows.
The Brit left Nigel Sears, father to Murray’s wife Kim, ahead of the US Open in order to link up with a coach from her youth, Andrew Richardson.
The move clearly paid off after Raducanu came through qualifying to claim the title in three gruelling weeks.
There is no hint of animosity between the two camps and former Wimbledon champ Murray revealed he had little doubt Raducanu would make it to the top.
He added: “I’ve spent a little bit of time around her on the practice court, but more so in the same building, training close to each other, and watching what she’s doing, and she’s obviously really, really good.”
