Emma Raducanu has credited her "tough" parents for being the inspiration behind her historic US Open win.
The 18-year-old British tennis player to become the first qualifier, male or female, to reach and win a Grand Slam singles final when she defeated Canadian player Leylah Fernandez on Saturday (11.09.21), and she says a lot of credit for the way she plays comes from her "hard to please" parents, Romanian-born Ian and Renee, who is originally from China.
She said: "[My parents] were pretty tough on me when I was young but it kind of shaped the way and I think now it's helping on the biggest stages in the world and Arthur Ashe Stadium when you really need it and it was basically a full capacity - so it was very, very cool."
Emma also revealed she had finally managed to impress her parents after her win, who could not attend the match in person due to COVID restrictions.
Appearing on 'Good Morning America' she said: "'It was really nice to talk to them after I won. They were just so happy and proud of me and my toughest critics and very, very hard to please but, yeah, I got them with this one. They couldn't resist."
Emma's stunning victory resulted in her getting a personal message from British monarch Queen Elizabeth, who called the win a "remarkable achievement" in a letter to the sports star.
Discussing the message on the ABC TV show, the sportswoman said: "I was so honoured and grateful to receive a note from Her Majesty. I mean, it meant everything to me and I'll probably frame that letter and keep it in my room or something."
