Britain’s Katie Boulter will break into the world’s top 25 for the first time after reaching her third WTA Tour final of the season at the Hong Kong Tennis Open – and her big dream of a move into the top 20 could now be in touching distance.
The British number one battled to a 6-2, 5-7, 6-2 victory over China’s Yuan Yue, which guaranteed she will climb to at least 23rd in the rankings on Monday.
Boulter has already won titles in San Diego and Nottingham this year and will hope to maintain her record of never having lost a tour level final when she takes on Diana Shnaider on Sunday.
“That was an unbelievable match,” said Boulter in her on-court interview after wiping away a few tears.
“She makes it so hard. I just had to keep believing, keep fighting and try and find a way through. I’m a little grumpy today, I’m a little tired, but I managed to find a way so I’m really happy with that.
“I’m super excited just to have a go (in the final). I wanted to finish my year on a career high, which is why today meant so much to me. I’ve got nothing to lose tomorrow and I’m just going to swing free and enjoy it for me.”
Boulter made the perfect start, winning four games in a row to establish a dominant lead in the first set.
She also led 3-1 in the second but errors began to creep in and the 28-year-old was pegged back before sixth seed Yuan broke serve to force a decider, but Boulter kept swinging and was not to be denied in the third set, opening up a 4-0 advantage and clinching her first match point with an ace.
Bolter’s impressive rise up the WTA Rankings marks a year of big progress for the new top two in British tennis, with Jack Draper also set to secure a career-high ranking after his season came to an end with a defeat against Alex de Minaur in the Paris Masters.
Draper is up to No 14 in the live ATP Rankings after his classy first ATP 500 title was won in Vienna last week.
When Draper spoke to Tennis365 last December at the UTS Grand Final in London, he set out his vision for 2024 and it is fair to say he has ticked plenty of his boxes.
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“I speak with my coach all the time about what my goals are and all these sort of things and the main one we always come back to is you can have visions of doing great but if you’re not putting the work in and doing the right things on a day-to-day basis then it’s going to be hard to achieve what you want,” Draper told us.
“My main goal is to fulfil my potential. If that’s to be a Grand Slam champion or to be top five or top 10 or top 20 we will see. But I do have big aspirations to be in that position one day. Fulfil my potential and then let’s see.
“I believe my tennis is pretty close to that but it’s about doing it on a consistent basis in competition and staying injury-free.
“I really believe in my game and my team and the way I approach things. I really believe I can be a top-20 player at the end of next year if I get things right, so that’s my goal and aspiration.”
Draper has hit that top 20 target in impressive fashion and in a year that saw Andy Murray call time on his career, his British successor has stepped forward in impressive fashion.
This has also been a positive year for Emma Raducanu, who started 2024 outside of the top 200 in the world rankings and is set to finish the year inside the top 60.
When you consider the lack of matches she has played due to injuries and poor decisions over scheduling, the scope for rising further up the ranking and challenging Boulter for the British No 1 spot will be there is Raducanu is capable of taking them in 2025.
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