'It's good to be home', says Emma Raducanu as she returns to UK

The US Open champion Emma Raducanu has returned home to south London.

Britain's first female tennis grand slam champion for 44 years is thought to have arrived back in the UK at Heathrow on Thursday morning.

She is understood to have been whisked away through the VIP exit, avoiding having to walk through the arrivals gate.

Raducanu received a police escort and was accompanied by security guards to her home in Bromley to be reunited with her parents.

The tennis star told reporters "it's good to be home", and said she was going to "have a party".

In the wake of her seismic win in New York, Raducanu admitted to still being on "cloud nine" and planned a few days of rest before getting back on court.

The 18-year-old defeated Leylah Fernandez 6-4 6-3 at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday.

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It was only Raducanu's second appearance at a major and the new world number 23 has made headlines across the globe, appeared on various TV channels in the United States and she also attended the Met Gala on Monday.

A day later the player from Kent ticked off another long-term aspiration when she visited Wall Street.

"I am on cloud nine but so excited to be here on New York Stock Exchange. It was one of the places on my bucket list before leaving New York and I'm just so excited and grateful to everyone who made this possible," Raducanu told CNBC's Closing Bell programme on Tuesday.

"I have a few days' rest and recovery (coming up), I think needed after the last seven weeks but then I am straight back to training and hungry to get better and come back out and play some more tournaments."

Raducanu only completed her A-levels earlier in the summer, achieving A* in mathematics and an A in economics at Newstead Wood School in Orpington.

The teenager revealed she always had a big interest in the New York Stock Exchange, adding: "It is something I have been studying at school, in my A-levels.

"I just always had a keen interest. My parents were both in finance and to see it live is incredible."

Watch: Raducanu speaks of of becoming Grand Slam champion in 2014 interview