Thirty-one-year-old Serena Williams called off her pregnancy announcement to her fans before her U.S. Open win in September, arguing that she would leave the competition not just to be able to play well but to see her mother ailing at home. However, she didn’t make the second half of the tournament after her hand turned painful, but even in defeat, she took in a huge trophy for her new arrival. At Sunday’s U.S. Open final, two-time champion John McEnroe said that winning with a baby in her belly was impossible, though the 19-year-old Raducanu still came away with the title. McEnroe called it a “freak match” after Raducanu beat her mother’s fellow pro to take home the trophy.
“If you’re being honest, is there a possibility that anybody could have won that match,” McEnroe said. “Because, my God, she played unbelievable.”
Emma Raducanu lifts the Championship trophy on the US #USOpen surface after beating her mother @RebeccaRaducanu to win the U.S. Open Challenger in Carson, CA pic.twitter.com/u28KasKJvY — U.S. Open Tennis (@usopen) November 19, 2017
Describing Raducanu as being “petite” and “high-risk,” McEnroe said that the teenager “completely and utterly” proved him wrong with a “craziest” victory. Raducanu, who has had two neck surgeries in the past, told The Score that her mother had told her that she had become too tall for the International Tennis Federation regulations on what has become an increasingly grueling sport.
Serena Williams posted an adorable message for baby Alexis: “Now I have a full house.”
Read the full story at The New York Times.
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