Emma Raducanu will face Mimi Xu, a leading light of the next generation of British tennis, in her opening round at Wimbledon this year.
Xu, the 17-year-old, was given direct entry into the main women’s singles draw at the Championships with a wildcard, and is currently ranked 302nd in the world.
She arrives at SW19 to make her Grand Slam debut and her first-round opponent is someone she knows well.
Just months after Raducanu’s US Open triumph, she was on the hunt for a hitting partner at the National Tennis Centre, and offered a 14-year-old Xu the chance to rally with her on the grass.
Born in October 2007, Xu’s full name is Mingge Olivia Xu, and she heralds from Swansea in south Wales.
Back in 2022, Xu attempted to become the youngest female to qualify for the main draw in the open era since 1968 as a 14-year-old.
She had been handed a wildcard for the Roehampton qualifying rounds after winning the national Under-18 title just months before, and she also became the youngest player to enter the Junior Wimbledon tournament that year.
She was beaten in the first round of qualifying by Hanna Chang, ranked over 800 places above her, but that did not stop her rise, as she reached the last 16 of Junior Wimbledon in 2023, defeating sixth Kaitlin Quevedo in the second round.
Her best performances at junior Grand Slams have come in Australia and the United States, where she reached the quarter-finals in Melbourne, and the last four in New York last year.
She has experience in the latter stage of grass-court tournaments, too, having reached the girls’ doubles final alongside compatriot and Junior US Open winner Mika Stojsavljevic, but the pair were defeated via a championship tiebreak to Americans Tyra Caterina Grant and Iva Jovic.
En route to the final, Stojsavljevic and Xu overcame top seeds Alena Kovačková and Laura Samson, in the quarter-finals.
This summer is where Xu has really began to make her mark at senior level. She made her bow at the WTA 125 event in Birmingham, stunning top seed and world no52 Alycia Parks in the first round, although she was beaten in the last eight by Jessika Ponchet.
In Nottingham, she played her first WTA Tour main draw match, defeating world no96 Katie Volynets, before succumbing to defeat to Magda Linette, the sixth seed.
Just last year, Xu completed his Maths A-Level two years early, telling the ITF that she did not know how else to spend her time.
"In my free time I just like to study. I don't know what else to do in my free time," Xu said.
“It's something different to tennis so it keeps my mind working. My tutor has been amazing. Whenever I have time I will have a lesson with her and it makes it a lot easier when I am away."
Acing advanced level mathematics two years early is some feat, but taking on Raducanu on tennis’ most famous court might just pip that.
