What does Emma Raducanu really want on a tennis court?
That was the question asked by Sky Sports’ commentator Jonathan Overend in the aftermath of Raducanu’s Australian Open exit, which be believe highlighted “confusion” in the camp of the “shackled” British No 1.
The period through last spring and summer, when Raducanu was without a permanent coach but working with former British No 1 Mark Petchey, offered real promise.
After Wimbledon, the former US Open champion turned to Rafael Nadal’s former coach Francisco Roig following a trial in July, but it seems she has taken something of a step back.
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Raducanu admits she is looking to play a different way after her shock second-round exit
The world No 29 was a doubt for the Australian Open after a foot problem throughout pre-season left her playing catch-up, only returning to the court in late December.
She looked short of match sharpness in a clash with Maria Sakkari at the United Cup, while she beat Camila Osorio in the opening round in Hobart but then lost to world No 204 Taylah Preston.
In Melbourne, Raducanu said she was ready to re-evaluate her game after her second-round exit to Anastasia Potapova on Wednesday.
“As so often, there’s a lot of reading between the lines to do when you assess Raducanu’s post-match and post-Australian Open comments. The one that jumps out to me is ‘re-evaluate,'” said Overend.
“I think she has spent a lot of her young career re-evaluating. In one regard, it explains why she has been through so many coaches and why she has been criticised for it.
“It’s typical of the Raducanu that wants to keep re-evaluating and finding out what is best for her on and around a tennis court. That challenge continues, and to some extent it is a struggle, because finding the right balance is so hard, but I think she is slowly getting [it], not in terms of her Grand Slam results but in terms of that re-evaluation process.
“What is it she really wants for herself on a tennis court and in tournaments?”
Is Raducanu feeling shackled?
Francis Roig has been working with Raducanu since Wimbledon
Overend questioned whether Raducanu’s start to the season was symptomatic of an overloaded player under new tuition wanting to break free.
“When reading between the lines, it sounds to me like there is confusion – confusion which can often come from coaches,” he added.
“This isn’t being critical of Roig; he’s done a lot of good work with Raducanu, that much is evident. But the harsh reality of the player‑coach relationship is that the player is the boss – the employer.
“In some cases, the coach needs the job; in some cases, the coach wants the job; and in other cases, the coach neither needs nor wants the job but is in it anyway.
“There is always strategic, tactical, and technical advice a coach can offer because they are experienced and have a certain degree of success. But what is success when it comes to tennis coaching? It is a great unknown.
“How would a player have got on without the input of a certain coach? Would they have been as good? Could they have been better?
“It sounds to me like Raducanu is feeling shackled, feeling like she needs to be freer and, ultimately, needs to be her own boss.”
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Martina Navratilova answers the Sky Sports viewers’ questions, including how Raducanu might play with her new coach…
There has been a lot of attention on Raducanu’s coaches during her career after several changes over the last four years.
Her first professional coach Nigel Sears left after she reached the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2021, before she chose not to extend her contract with Andrew Richardson, who helped the then 18-year-old to a memorable US Open title.
Torben Beltz had a short spell as her coach between November 2021 and April 2022, before being replaced by Dimitri Tursunov, who warned of “red flags” if Raducanu continued to listen to too many voices.
Sebastian Sachs lasted just the first half of 2023 as Raducanu’s coach before reuniting with Nick Cavaday, who mentored her as a junior last year.
However, Cavaday stepped back at the start of this season in January for health reasons but worked with Raducanu again during the grass-court season, alongside Petchey.
Raducanu played some of her best tennis under Petchey, whose television commitments meant he was always unable to become a full-time coach before she turned to Roig.
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Take a look back at Raducanu’s incredible win at the 2021 US Open
“I’m not suggesting she should go it alone or sack Roig, but when you think of some of Raducanu’s best moments in recent years, it’s when she’s smiling and enjoying herself on the practice and match courts, when she’s feeling free and ambitious,” Overend said.
“You want her to feel that more often. If she is feeling restricted by the extra variety she’s bringing into her game because of technical tweaking and experimentation, and it’s making her not enjoy her tennis, it’s a bad thing.
“Her comment about enjoying hitting the ball hard and fast into the corners – how she won the US Open. I’d say go for it, Emma, enjoy it. If that’s the part of the game you love, do more of it.”
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