What Emma Raducanu had to say about Marketa Vondrousova as she rates coach Mark Petchey
Emma Raducanu will face Marketa Vondrousova for the second time at Wimbledon and the British No 1 is wary of the challenge that awaits her in the next match.
The two Grand Slam winners enjoyed relatively straightforward opening matches at the grass-court major as Raducanu overcame fellow Brit Mimi Xu 6-3, 6-3 while Vondrousova defeated 32nd seed McCartney Kessler 6-1, 7-6 (7-3).
They are now set for a fourth career meeting with Vondrousova leading their head-to-head 2-1 as she won their two most recent encounters, at this year’s Abu Dhabi Open and in the Billie Jean King Cup in 2022. Raducanu, though, won their first-ever meeting on her Wimbledon debut in 2021.
“I remember I played really good tennis,” the 2021 US Open winner said of their clash at the All England Club. “I remember I played one of the best matches I’ve played. Was so aggressive, took the ball on. Obviously since she’s won the Wimbledon title and had a lot more success on grass.
“I remember that was, yeah, a big change, a big turning point for me. I’m looking forward, again, to have the opportunity to be in the second round. I’m grateful for that.”
Having missed several months due to a shoulder injury, Vondrousova is running into form as she won the Berlin Tennis Open on grass, beating the likes of world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka and Australian Open champion Madison Keys en route to lifting the title.
“She obviously won Berlin, 500. Beat really top players on the way to the title,” Raducanu added.
“[It will be a] really difficult match. Obviously has won Wimbledon. Amazing grass court player, in general. I think it’s going to be a really difficult match. I’m going to need to play very well to get over the line.”
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Vondrousova enjoyed success as a teenager as she reached the 2019 French Open final at the age of 19 before losing against Ashleigh Barty.
But she only played one more match after that, a first-round loss at Wimbledon, as a wrist injury brought a premature end to her season as she was forced to undergo surgery.
After making her way back up the rankings, her injury nightmare returned as she was forced to undergo another operation.
But it finally clicked in 2023 as she became the first unseeded player to win Wimbledon, beating four seeded players to reach the final, where she upset sixth seed Ons Jabeur in straight sets.
The following year had more downs than ups as she became one of only a handful of players to lose in the first round at Wimbledon as defending champion while she had another injury setback.
But Vondrousova is once again slowly on the up again.
Raducanu, of course, knows all too well about winning a major at a young age and struggling with injury.
Asked about the Czech’s journey, the 22-year-old replied: “I remember watching her when I was young making the final of the French. She was so young there. Always seemed like way above me, way further ahead than me.
“Then she had a, like, wrist surgery and then came back and won Wimbledon, which is incredible. So she’s a really, really talented player. We played earlier on in the year in Abu Dhabi. I know she’s super tough.
“It’s very difficult to maintain that top level after winning a Slam. But yeah, she’s really playing in form right now.”
Raducanu is also finding consistency following her own struggles and her coach Mark Petchey has played a key role.
After years of chopping and changing, she started working again with Nick Cavaday in 2024 and she made impressive progress before Cavaday stepped down after this year’s Australian Open.
She started working with Petchey – who coached former world No 1 Andy Murray early on in his career – in March and he has helped her to return to the top 50.
Asked to rate her mentor, she replied: “I’d give him 11 out of 10. He’s been, like, everything the last few months for me. I’ve really enjoyed being around him. He’s helped me so much on all fronts, tennis, off-court.
“I think the most memorable moment… We’ve had quite a few. Like, there was one hike we did in L.A. We walked for, like, two and a half hours. We spoke. It was one of those really, I guess, like, deep conversations where I was like, okay, certain things I need to do better. It was just one that I could take away and really reflect on.”
