‘Raducanu needs plan quickly to build on Miami progress’

Emma Raducanu is beginning to act like 2021.

Prior to this week’s Miami Open, the Briton, who won 10 straight sets games to win the US Open title, had only managed three victories in a row.

Jessica Pegula, the world’s number four, ended her run in the quarter-finals, but Raducanu will make it back to the top 50 on Monday for the first time since September 2022.

Despite a constantly evolving cast of coaches and a typically difficult year-beginning, success has arrived.

The 22-year-old hasn’t had a full-time coach since January, but he had a lot of freedom in Miami.

A man who had been following Raducanu around the circuit was removed from her second-round game and given a restraining order as a result of February’s trouble in the Middle East.

Despite being frequently without a lot of support, Raducanu appeared rudderless for the majority of that time. Since beginning in December, Yutaka Nakamura, her strength and conditioning coach, has hardly ever left.

In Abu Dhabi, Roman Kelecic, a coach since her teenage years, gave a helping hand. Former LTA coach and friend Jane O’Donoghue was in Dubai and Doha. Vladimir Platenik usurped Tom Welsh from the Loughborough Academy by bringing him in for a hastily scheduled trial in California, where he had previously been hired for a short-term assignment at Indian Wells.

In the pandemic summer of 2020, Petchey trained with Raducanu and an 18-year-old Andy Murray for 10 months, during which he won his first ATP title.

Raducanu appears to have had a lasting impression during those two weeks spent at the National Tennis Centre in London. The two people have a close relationship and respect for one another.

O’Donoghue has been Raducanu’s frequent confidant up until 2019, when she left the sport for a more casual life.

Raducanu has faith in them and can unwind at work, but they both work from day jobs.

O’Donoghue is in finance, Petchey is in broadcasting, most notably with the Tennis Channel. She is currently taking a sabbatical, but it is not suggested that she wants to permanently return to the less secure world of tennis coaching.

Both could provide input, but as things stand, neither would provide the support Raducanu claimed she needed from the BBC in Indian Wells.

She said this month, “Once I have a structure in place and I can fall back on the process, I will feel very set.”

“Being alone in the Middle East was very difficult for me because I didn’t really have any structure or rules for what tournaments to play.”

Raducanu will spend the next two weeks working with the LTA coaching team, which is a member of the Great Britain team that will compete in the Billie Jean King Cup qualifying round in early April.

But she will require a swifter, longer plan.

Before the French Open, there will be very little rest before the end of October due to her clay-court schedule, which could include visits to Stuttgart, Madrid, and Rome.

That strategy doesn’t need to revolve around just one person.

Many of the best players have more than one coach, typically because it is difficult for one person to commit to traveling for more than 30 weeks each year.

Jack Draper canceled his summertime partnership with Wayne Ferreira because he favors James Trotman’s “one voice” and is now taking turns hosting events with Alex Ward.

If Cavaday’s health issues had first arisen in the spring of 2024, things might have changed.

Raducanu has always enjoyed being around various personalities and ways of thinking, but Cavaday’s time together provided her with stability and calm.

Other partnerships quickly ran out, much like that.

Only two weeks were spent on Platenik. Although Raducanu is widely admired, his personality did not seem to be suitable for Raducanu.

He was intense and opinionated, according to a former player, who compared him to a “freight train.” Platinenik claims that Raducanu told him that she was feeling stressed when the brief collaboration came to an end.

Given his success at the Grand Slam with Angelique Kerber, Torben Beltz appeared to be a great choice, but Raducanu didn’t think he had enough to offer.

Due to the fact that Dmitry Tursunov believed Raducanu needed to have “one voice” to listen to, he ended their partnership. He mentioned “red flags” and “a feeling that future issues may arise.”

After having operations on both hands and left ankle, which kept her on the sidelines until the second half of 2023, she left Sebastian Sachs.

After Wimbledon 2021, it seemed logical to dispense Nigel Sears’ services, but Andrew Richardson’s choice, who later led her to that historic victory at the US Open, seemed inconsequential.

Would Raducanu resign from a position she had previously left? With Daniela Hantuchova, Ana Ivanovic, and Anett Kontaveit, Spears still appears to be a good bet.

He regularly attends the National Tennis Centre in London, where he plays for the LTA’s women’s team, but is no longer a part of Olivia Gadecki, an Australian tennis player.

Without the right people around her, Raducanu might face a challenging spring and summer due to her progress in Miami.

Does she ever glance at Draper’s setup indignantly?

His team appears to be a very professional outfit, and some difficult choices have recently been made.

No longer working with physio Will Herbert and strength-training Steve Kotze. Shane Annun and Matt Little, who were so important to Andy Murray’s team, have taken their place.