GB News’ Eamonn Holmes sparks backlash on show for savage swipe at tennis legend

Emma Raducanu was hailed a success for British tennis and an ambassador for sportswomen after she won the US Open in 2021 – but a string of match losses and hiccups in the years since have left some claiming her win was a fluke.

Eamonn Holmes and Isabel Webster clashed over her on this morning’s episode of GB News, with the former delivering a savage swipe against her. Thanks to Emma and British number one Katie Boulter, GB ousted Canada to sail through to the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup over the weekend.

It was a major win – but Eamonn remained unimpressed as he reminded Isabel: “You said she won again… she won a game.” Isabel defended that she’d been “consistently playing well”, only to have the question raised of whether she was being overly “generous”.

Then Eamonn went in for the jugular, quizzing: “Who are you talking about?” He added: “Oh, for God’s sake! I thought you were talking about some serious contender here!”

Emma had beaten Canada’s Rebecca Marino in two sets, scoring 6-0, 7-5. That left Britain in a strong position as the second game began, and Katie Boulter’s 6-2, 6-4 win against Leylah Fernandez then secured a place in the semi-finals.

Although Eamonn was disdainful about Emma, he praised Billie Jean King, whom the tournament was named after, murmurring: “Now there was a player.”

The American, now 80 years old, had won 39 Grand Slam titles in her time.

In contrast, Emma has so far claimed just one – the US Open – and the same year, she was knocked out of Wimbledon in just the fourth round, delivering a painful blow to patriotic Brits’ hopes of a home win.

However, Isabel defended her, arguing that she was only “just below” where “she needed to be” and that she was hopeful of a win.