What we learnt from the 2026 grass court season
• 4 minute read
Another grass court season in the books, and it’s been a summer of more unforgettable moments and storylines.
Before looking ahead to the US hard court swing, we analyse six key learnings from this year’s grass court season.
Fery announces himself on the world stage
Where else to start but with the emergence of British star Arthur Fery. The now 24-year-old came into the summer with a few solid results behind him – including qualification for the Australian Open – but no one would have predicted what came next.
After a semi-final at the Lexus Birmingham Open and a first ATP 500 quarter-final at the HSBC Championships, Fery earned himself a wild card spot for The Championships, Wimbledon.
Fery started the week ranked at world No.114 and went on to reach his first Grand Slam semi-final, rise inside the ATP top 40 and is now the new British No.1.
He became the fifth British man and the second wild card to reach the final four at Wimbledon, and has generated fans worldwide.
Fery showed he has the game to compete with players at the very top of the game, and his tennis IQ and phenomenal movement will serve him well heading into his now revised ATP Tour schedule.
Strength and depth in British tennis
Over the course of the LTA grass court season, a British player appeared in at least the singles semi-final for all events, apart from the Lexus Nottingham Open. Here’s a rundown:
- Lexus Birmingham Open – Arthur Fery (Semi-final)
- HSBC Championships – Emma Raducanu (Final) and Katie Boulter (Semi-final)
- Lexus Ilkley Open – Jacob Fearnley (Final)
- Lexus Eastbourne Open – Jack Draper (Semi-final) and Toby Samuel (Semi-final)
- Lexus British Open Roehampton – Alfie Hewett (Final)
- Lexus Nottingham Challenger – Henry Searle (Champion)
That’s not to mention 17-year-old Mika Stojsavljevic reaching her first WTA 125 quarter-final in Birmingham, Fery’s quarter-final at The Queen’s Club, Billy Harris in the Lexus Nottingham Open quarter-finals, and a last-eight appearance in Eastbourne for Jan Choinski.
Coming off the back of the grass court season, there are nine men and six women ranked inside the top 200 of the respective tours – including debuts in the top 100 for Fery and Choinski.
Noskova the new Queen on grass
21-year-old Czech star Linda Noskova has made her case for being the best grass court player on the WTA Tour right now.
Noskova began her summer campaign by winning the WTA 500 Belin Open, beating Jessica Pegula in the final to win her first title of the season. But she was only getting started.
At Wimbledon, she came in as one of the dark horses given her form, and once again strung together a series of impressive wins.
She defeated Eastbourne champion Madison Keys, Elise Mertens and Roland Garros semi-finalist Marta Kostyuk in straight sets to reach her first major final.
Facing off against countrywoman Karolina Muchova, the Czech had five championship points in the second set. Muchova came back to force a decider, but Noskova refused to let the title slip through her fingers, coming through with a 6-2, 5-7, 6-3 win.
After a stunning summer, Noskova is now the world No.7 and takes the title as the reigning Queen of grass.
Raducanu shows grit & determination
British No.1 Emma Raducanu’s run to the HSBC Championships final at The Queen’s Club was one of the stories of the grass court season.
It was a first WTA 500 final for the British star and a second WTA final of the season so far – a just reward for a hard-fought week in West London.
Raducanu picked up her first top 20 wins of the season over Sorana Cirstea and Iva Jovic, and had to come through two matches on the Saturday to reach Sunday’s final.
After losing the first set to Donna Vekic in the final 6-0, Raducanu came within a few points of forcing a decider before the Croatian managed to get over the line.
Overall, it was a fantastic week for the former US Open champion, once again showcasing that she has the level and capability – especially on grass – to beat anyone on the tour. While injuries put her out of Wimbledon, Raducanu should take plenty of confidence from her week at Queen’s Club.
Sinner closing in on Alcaraz
While reigning champion and world No.1 Jannik Sinner arrived at Wimbledon as the favourite, given the absence of rival Carlos Alcaraz, there were still plenty of questions surrounding the Italian.
Sinner had bowed out in the second round of Roland Garros and hadn’t played a tournament on grass in the build-up to SW19.
The top seed was slow coming out of the blocks, being taken to five sets by Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round, but then got better and better as the fortnight progressed.
After a straight-sets semi-final win over Novak Djokovic, Sinner beat Zverev in the final – the second longest win of his career.
The victory puts Sinner on five Grand Slams, only two behind Alcaraz (seven).
The next two majors, the US Open and Australian Open are currently held by the Spaniard, who is on his way back from a long-term injury. Both hard court events – arguably Sinner’s best surface – in seven months’ time, could Sinner and Alcaraz be level on major wins?
British doubles leading the way
Great Britain are at the top of the world in doubles – especially in the men’s game. Henry Patten is currently the world No.1 and cemented his status as one half of the world’s best team after he and Harri Heliovaara lifted a third Grand Slam title together at Wimbledon.
However, there was plenty of British success throughout the rest of the summer as well with 12 champions in men’s, women’s and wheelchair tournaments.
British No.1 Olivia Nicholls and Slovakian partner Tereza Mihalikova were the stars of the show at the HSBC Championships, winning their second WTA 500 on grass.
Harriet Dart and Maia Lumsden lifted their first WTA Tour title together at the Lexus Nottingham Open.
There were two all-British doubles winners in Ilkley – Freya Christie and Eden Silva in the women’s doubles, and Marcus Willis and David Stevenson in the men’s. Meanwhile, Ben Jones and Joshua Paris were crowned champions in Birmingham.
Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid made more wheelchair tennis history again this summer. The duo went unbeaten, clinching the Lexus British Open Roehampton WC 1000 title, followed by a seventh Wimbledon trophy in 10 years.
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