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Emma Raducanu scripted one of the greatest fairytales in tennis history by winning the US Open this year. The Brit became the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam singles title and her ranking subsequently rose from 150 to 23.
Over the years, some of the biggest names in women's tennis have won Grand Slam titles at a very young age. Steffi Graf, Chris Evert, Maria Sharapova, Martina Hingis and Monica Seles were all Major champions as teenagers.
Let's take a look at the youngest female Grand Slam singles champions in the Open Era.
#10. Svetlana Kuznetsova - 19 years and 76 days
After successive third-round exits at the US Open, Svetlana Kuznetsova was the ninth seed in 2004. She won her first four matches without dropping a set to reach only her second Grand Slam quarterfinals.
Kuznetsova defeated compatriot Nadia Petrova in the quarterfinals to qualify for the semifinals. Her opponent was fifth seed and former champion Lindsay Davenport. The American breezed through the first but the Russian fought back to win and reach her maiden Grand Slam final.
The teenager squared off against sixth seed and compatriot Elena Dementieva, who was in her second Grand Slam final of the year. Kuznetsova won in straight sets to win the first Major of her career.
#9. Hana Mandlikova - 18 years and 329 days
A precocious talent, Hana Mandlikova established herself as one of the best players in the world at a very young age and was seeded third at the 1980 Australian Open.
The 18-year-old reached her first Grand Slam semifinal after a tough victory over Romania's Virginia Ruzici. Mandlikova then squared off against Yugoslavia's Mima Jausovec, who had beaten local favorite Evonne Goolagong. Mandlikova beat her comprehensively to set up a final clash against fourth-seeded Australian Wendy Turnbull.
Mandlikova bageled Turnbull in the first set and took the second 7-5 to win her first Grand Slam title. She went on to win three more Majors in her career.
#8. Emma Raducanu - 18 years and 302 days
Emma Raducanu's remarkable achievement at the US Open puts her in eighth spot on the list. Following a promising run at Wimbledon, the Brit entered the qualifying stages of the US Open ranked 150th in the world.
She won all her qualifying matches to reach the main draw. After beating four unseeded opponents, Raducanu made it to her first Grand Slam quarterfinals, where she was up against Olympic champion Belinda Bencic. The teenager beat Bencic in straight sets and made it to the semis, where she faced Maria Sakkari. Raducanu had little trouble defeating the 17th-seeded Greek to reach the final.
Standing between Raducanu and a maiden Grand Slam title was unseeded Canadian Leylah Fernandez. The British teenager won 6-4, 6-3 to become the first qualifier to win a Major.
#7. Steffi Graf - 17 years and 357 days
1987 was the year that Steffi Graf truly announced herself on the world stage. After winning six tournaments, the teenager entered the French Open as the second seed.
Graf dropped only five games in her first three matches before beating Canada's Helen Kelesi to enter the quarterfinals. Here, she beat Bulgaria's Manuela Maleeva to set up a semifinal clash against seventh seed Gabriela Sabatini. The German won in three sets to reach her maiden Grand Slam final.
Standing between Graf and the Roland Garros trophy was top seed Martina Navratilova. The German took the first set 6-4 before the Czech won the second with the same scoreline. However, Graf edged the third set 8-6 to win the first of her 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
#6. Serena Williams - 17 years and 350 days
Serena Williams entered the top 10 of the WTA rankings in 1999 and arrived at the US Open as the seventh seed. She had a couple of tough encounters against Kim Clijsters and Conchita Martinez but was able to qualify for the quarterfinals, where she faced Monica Seles. Seles took the first set but Williams rebounded strongly to win and make it to the semifinals.
The young American then beat second seed Lindsay Davenport in three sets to qualify for her maiden Grand Slam final. Awaiting her in the title clash was top seed Martina Hingis, who had beaten Venus Williams in the semifinals.
Serena defeated the Swiss in straight sets to win her first Major and become the first African-American woman to win a Grand Slam singles title since Althea Gibson in 1958.
#5. Arantxa Sanchez Vicario - 17 years and 174 days
Arantxa Sanchez Vicario was the seventh seed at the 1989 French Open and started strongly with two straight-set wins. After winning in three sets against qualifier Natalia Medvedeva, the Spaniard beat Amanda Coetzer to reach the quarterfinals.
Sanchez Vicario then defeated Jana Novotna to make her first Grand Slam semifinal, where she triumphed over 15th seed Mary Joe Fernandez.
In the final, Sanchez Vicario squared off against World No. 1 Steffi Graf, who had won five Grand Slams in a row. The Spaniard won a tightly contested first set before her opponent took the second to level the match. At 5-3 up in the deciding set, Graf was serving for the Championship but Sanchez Vicario broke her and went on to win 7-5.
#4. Maria Sharapova - 17 years and 75 days
After a promising run at the French Open, where she reached the quarterfinals, Maria Sharapova entered Wimbledon as the 13th seed.
Sharapova reached the quarterfinals without dropping a set. She then defeated both Ai Sugiyama and Lindsay Davenport from a set down to qualify for her first Grand Slam final.
The teenager took on two-time defending champion and World No. 1 Serena Williams in the final. She beat the American 6-1, 6-4 to win her maiden Grand Slam title. Sharapova's victory over Williams is considered among the greatest upsets in the tournament's history.
#3. Tracy Austin - 16 years and 270 days
Like almost every player on this list, Tracy Austin was considered a tennis prodigy.
In 1979, she competed at the US Open, seeded third. Austin qualified for the quarterfinals after beating three of her compatriots. In the last eight, she beat unseeded German Sylvia Hanika in straight sets to make it to the semifinals. Austin won a tightly-contested match against Martina Navratilova to reach her first Grand Slam final.
Her opponent was top seed and four-time defending champion Chris Evert. Austin defeated her fellow American in straight sets to become the youngest US Open champion at the time.
#2. Monica Seles - 16 years and 189 days
Few players, if any, were better than Monica Seles between the ages of 16 to 19. Seles was seeded second at the 1990 French Open and had a couple of tough matches against Helen Kelesi and Leila Meskhi before reaching the quarterfinals.
Seles survived a scare from Manuela Maleeva in the quarterfinals before making easy work of Jennifer Capriati to reach her first Grand Slam final.
Standing between Seles and the Roland Garros trophy was top seeded Steffi Graf, who hadn't dropped a set in the tournament. Seles saved four set points to take the first set 7-6 before winning the second 6-4 to claim her maiden Grand Slam title.
#1. Martina Hingis - 16 years and 117 days
Martina Hingis became the youngest Grand Slam champion of all time in 1996 after winning the women's doubles title at Wimbledon. The following year, she competed at the Australian Open as the fourth seed.
Hingis reached the quarterfinals with little trouble. Here, she beat Romania's Irina Spirlea to set up a semifinal clash with Mary Joe Fernandez. She beat the American comprehensively to reach her first Grand Slam singles final.
Hingis was up against 1995 champion Mary Pierce, who she defeated 6-2, 6-2 to claim her first Major. The win meant the Swiss became the youngest female ever to win a Grand Slam singles title.
