Donna Vekic Beats Emma Raducanu 6-0, 7-6 to Win Queen's Title

Q: How did a 'lucky loser' defy the odds to win the Queen's Club title and break her finals curse?

Donna Vekić won the Queen’s Club title by turning an unexpected second chance into a composed, high-level grass-court run, then delivering under pressure in the final to end her streak of five straight defeats in title matches. Vekić entered the main draw as a lucky loser after failing to qualify directly, benefiting from withdrawals. From there, the 29-year-old Croatian used her experience and strong grass-court game to beat Mika Stojsavljevic, Marie Bouzková, Karolína Plíšková and Katie Boulter, the British player who had earlier knocked out top seed Elena Rybakina. Her semifinal win over Boulter, 6-1, 6-3, underlined her form. In the final, Vekić overwhelmed Emma Raducanu early, taking the first set 6-0, just as she had done against Boulter. The second set was far tighter, but that was where she broke her “finals curse.” She recovered from a deficit, saved two set points and edged the tiebreak 8-6 to seal a 6-0, 7-6(6) victory. The title was significant on several levels. It was Vekić’s fifth WTA Tour title, her first WTA 500 crown, and her second career title on grass. It also made her one of the rare lucky losers to win a WTA title, and the first at this event. After five consecutive losses in finals, she finally converted a championship match, showing both the form and nerve that had been missing in those previous title defeats.

3 articles · Updated · ESPN · Jun 14

Raducanu's bid for a first title since the 2021 US Open ended in London after Vekic dominated the opening set and then edged a second-set tiebreak 8-6.
Two matches on Saturday left the Briton with 2 hours 19 minutes more court time than Vekic, after rain disruption forced her to beat Kamilla Rakhimova and Iva Jovic in one day.
The 23-year-old still pushed the final deep, saving four championship points and earning two set points in the 10th game before falling short of a decider.
Raducanu played with strapping on her left thigh and had only one win since March after a two-and-a-half-month absence with post-viral illness, making the runner-up finish a notable grass-court rebound.