Emma Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion and current British No. 1, is at risk of a significant rankings drop following a challenging draw at the 2025 Wimbledon Championships, where she is unseeded at world No. 38. Last year’s fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon earned her 240 ranking points, which are set to expire after the tournament concludes on July 13, 2025. Failing to match or surpass that performance could see her slide out of the top 50, potentially losing her British No. 1 status to Katie Boulter, who is ranked No. 29 and faces Paula Badosa in the first round. Raducanu’s candid admission, “Truthfully, I don’t expect much from myself this year,” reflects the daunting path ahead, compounded by a lingering back injury and personal challenges, as reported by *Tennis365* and *Motorcycle Sports* on June 29, 2025.[](https://www.tennis365.com/wimbledon/emma-raducanu-rankings-collapse-wimbledon-draw)[](https://motorcyclesports.net/emma-raducanu-faces-rankings-peril-after-grueling-wimbledon-challenge/)
Raducanu’s first-round match pits her against 17-year-old British wildcard Mingge “Mimi” Xu, ranked No. 302, in an all-British clash on Court One on June 30, 2025. Xu, a promising junior who has beaten two top-100 players on grass this season, is a “dangerous” opponent, per Raducanu’s comments to Sky Sports. A win would set up a second-round meeting with either 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova or 32nd seed McCartney Kessler, who won Nottingham in June 2025. Vondrousova, fresh off a WTA 500 title in Berlin, is a formidable hurdle, with analysts like Andy Roddick predicting she could end Raducanu’s run early. A potential third-round clash with world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka looms, a matchup where Raducanu would be a heavy underdog, as noted in *ESPN* and *The Guardian*.[](https://www.espn.com/tennis/story/_/id/45484517/wimbledon-2025-emma-raducanu-draw-path-final)[](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/jun/27/wimbledon-2025-draw-emma-raducanu-jack-draper-tennis)[](https://www.espn.in/tennis/story/_/id/45484517/wimbledon-2025-emma-raducanu-draw-path-final)
Raducanu’s 2025 season has been inconsistent, marked by a strong start with a third-round Australian Open run (defeating Ekaterina Alexandrova and Amanda Anisimova) and a Queen’s Club quarter-final, but marred by four consecutive first-round losses in Singapore, Abu Dhabi, Qatar, and Dubai, the latter exacerbated by a stalker-induced panic attack. Her grass-court preparation was curtailed by a back injury, leading to a withdrawal from Berlin and a second-round exit to Maya Joint at Eastbourne, per *ProFootballNetwork*. These setbacks, coupled with a coaching change from Nick Cavaday to Mark Petchey, have left her physically and mentally tested.[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emma_Raducanu)[](https://www.profootballnetwork.com/tennis/mimi-xu-reacts-drawing-emma-raducanu-wimbledon-2025/)
The draw’s difficulty has sparked debate, with *The Telegraph* and *Sky Sports* labeling it “daunting” and “nightmarish,” while some X posts, like @pavyg’s, questioned the BBC’s characterization of it as “difficult” given Xu’s lower ranking. @islandtennisace highlighted the brutal progression: “Kessler or Vondrousova second round, Sabalenka (projected) third round, Svitolina (projected) fourth round.” Raducanu’s focus on enjoying Wimbledon, inspired by Ana Ivanovic’s advice to avoid regrets, may help her navigate this pressure, but the rankings peril remains real.
