Emma Raducanu says her ‘natural’ game has been ‘coached out’ of her in telling comments
Emma Raducanu has said her “natural way of playing” has been “coached out” of her and divulged that she will “tap into a few people” rather than having a single coach.
World No 24 Raducanu split with Francisco Roig following her second round exit at the Australian Open in January, having worked with the Spanish coach since August.
Last week, it was revealed that Raducanu had reunited with her former coach Mark Petchey for the 2026 Indian Wells Open.
The 2021 US Open winner enjoyed a successful partnership with Petchey between March and August last year, while she was also coached by the former British No 1 in 2020.
Alexis Canter has served as Raducanu’s coach and hitting partner since she parted ways with Roig, and he will remain a member of her coaching setup.
In an interview with BBC Sport ahead of her appearance in Indian Wells, Raducanu spoke positively about the impact Petchey has on her.
“I work really well when I’m with him,” Raducanu said. “I’m really happy to be on the court and just really enjoy it overall. I’m not sure, going forward, what it will look like.”
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The 22-year-old suggested that Roig had a negative impact on her game and explained why she is now reluctant to work with only one coach.
“Right now, it’s more about bringing my instincts back out, getting back in touch with myself,” the former world No 10 said.
“I have had a lot of people telling me what to do, how to play, and it hasn’t necessarily fit.
“So I want to come back to my natural way of playing. That takes time to relearn because that’s something that has been coached out of me a little bit.
“I don’t necessarily want to have one coach in the role because anyone I bring in is straight away going to be scrutinised — even if it’s a trial.
“I might feel the pressure to stick with them, even if it’s not necessarily the right decision.
“I would love to have a coach that works well, but I don’t think it’s necessarily going to be easy to find one person and they are going to check every box.
“I definitely have my mind open to it. It’s just that I would rather someone not come in and tell me ‘let’s do this’, and I disagree with it but have to listen to them.
“So far Alexis [Canter] has been really good, but I am definitely going to tap into a few people here and there.”
