Two success stories of the women's singles draw at this year's Wimbledon battle on Sunday when qualifier Lulu Sun takes on home favourite Emma Raducanu on Centre Court.
Sunday's fourth-round match could see the 23-year-old reach the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time at the expense of Raducanu, who claimed another straight-sets win at the Championships last time out.
Match preview
What Sun has achieved at the Championships in 2024 has been nothing short of admirable, with her Wimbledon debut taking her into the fourth round at SW19.
The qualifier has had to battle in rounds one, two and three to make it this far, underscored by going the distance to upset eighth seed Zheng Qinwen and fellow qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva before requiring two tiebreaks to edge Zhu Lin 7-6(4), 7-6(6) in the third.
Now, she aims to do the unexpected against her home opponent to silence a partisan Centre Court in what would be an upset for the qualifier, whose previous Slam experience came at this year's Australian Open where she exited in her tournament debut.
Having endured below-par showings in the preparatory tournaments in the lead-up to the Championships at 's-Hertogenbosch and Gaiba, what has followed for the 23-year-old has been nothing short of extraordinary.
Including qualifying matches, Sun has now won six straight matches on grass, and she aims to make it seven against Raducanu on Sunday.
That could be an uphill task for the in-form player, who must overcome her British opponent and the fierce support on home soil.
Despite never making it to the quarter-finals on the lawns of Wimbledon, Raducanu has experience of a deep run at the majors, even if that happened three years back in a successful US Open win.
That remains the 21-year-old's only victory at a Slam, and she aims to reach the last eight here for the first time to improve her prospects of adding to that 2021 success in New York, keen to take advantage of her side of the draw opening up following a spate of withdrawals or shock exits.
While only Coco Gauff ostensibly stands in her way of reaching the final, Raducanu cannot look that far ahead and must deal with the threat Sun poses to her chances on home soil as she continues to reap the rewards of a strong run in the pre-Championships tournaments that followed a decision to skip this year's French Open.
Nevertheless, it remains to be seen how severe the wrist issue that forced her out of competing with Andy Murray in the mixed doubles is, with the stiffness possibly meaning a less than 100% Briton steps onto Centre Court on Sunday.
Tournament so far
Lulu Sun:
First round: vs. Zheng Qinwen 4-6 6-2 6-4
Second round: vs. Yuliia Starodubtseva 4-6 6-3 6-2
Third round: vs. Zhu Lin 7-6[4] 7-6[6]
Emma Raducanu:
First round: vs. Renata Zarazua 7-6[0] 6-3
Second round: vs. Elise Mertens 6-1 6-2
Third round: vs. Maria Sakkari 6-2 6-3
Head To Head
The fact that both these players have never faced on the women's Tour adds an extra layer of intrigue heading into their battle on Sunday.
Having secured routine wins over right-handed opponents in rounds one, two and three, a left-handed Sun gives Raducanu something else to think about tactically on Sunday.
We say: Raducanu to win in two sets
Despite Sun's heart-warming run to the fourth round at Wimbledon, that should end against the home Wild Card, who has so far dispatched her opponents without losing a set, although much will depend on the Briton's stiff wrist that forced her mixed doubles withdrawal on Saturday.
Raducanu not only has superior momentum on grass courts, but she also has the support of Centre Court to count on, pointing to progress to the last eight at SW19.
body check tags ::
Previews by email
