Emma Raducanu will 'probably' keep changing coaches 'for rest of her career'

July 25, 2023

British Tennis Players, Emma Raducanu, Tennis News, WTA Tennis Players

Emma Raducanu will ‘probably’ keep changing coaches ‘for the rest of her career’ claims her agent

Emma Raducanu burst onto the scene at Wimbledon in 2021 and has since had five different permanent coaches, something that her agent revealed is likely to continue.

Raducanu is currently on the injury sidelines, after undergoing double wrist surgery as well as a procedure on her left ankle.

This brought an end to her working relationship with coach Sebastian Sachs, who had been part of her team for six months, with the Brit labelling the situation as ‘unfortunate’.

I have really enjoyed Seb’s coaching and working with him, it’s unfortunate that circumstances made it unfeasible for both of us to continue right now and we have decided to part ways. I wish Seb all the best moving forwards. ? pic.twitter.com/wrewLWVDVS

— Emma Raducanu (@EmmaRaducanu) June 1, 2023

Raducanu’s agent and IMG senior vice-president Max Eisenbud discussed her coaching situation with The Tennis Podcast, “It’s probably going to be like that for the rest of her career. That’s what’s comfortable for them.

“I’m not saying it is right or wrong, but that is the way they have done it, and I think it is fine to do things differently. All the way up through the juniors, they never had coaches a long time, so, for them, that’s calm waters – having a coach for four to five months and then going on to someone else.”

Raducanu is said to be managed by her father, Ian, and Eisenbud compared that to other famous father-daughter pairings.

“Emma and her dad have their own philosophy. Richard Williams (father of Venus and Serena) had his own philosophy, which was different, and Yuri Sharapova (father of Maria) had his,” explained Eisenbud.

He continued, “We are not sitting in a sport that has a plethora of great coaches – maybe eight, nine or 10 great coaches.

“Most of the great, great coaches don’t want to travel for 35 or 40 weeks a year and leave their families, so you have a small pool that are willing to travel and charge very little money, so they keep getting recycled and recycled. That is why you see coaches hopping around.”

Dmitry Tursunov, who was Raducanu’s fourth coach, suggested that there were ‘red flags’ after parting ways with the 2021 US Open champion and Eisenbud has commented on this.

“There are coaches who might be afraid to take the shot because they’ve seen the track record,” claimed the IMG seniot vice-president.

Eisenbud added, “I understand it is uncomfortable and doesn’t fit in the box that everyone wants, but if Emma Raducanu’s biggest issue is that she is changing coaches every couple of months, I will sign up for that.”

Raducanu is currently ranked No.131 and it seems unlikely that the 20-year-old will return for the US Open that begins next month, however the Brit has posted videos of her working in the gym in a bid to recover from her injuries.

today was a good day – ??

— Emma Raducanu (@EmmaRaducanu) July 20, 2023

Emma Raducanu and her coaching changes

Raducanu has had five different permanent coaches and her partnership with Sachs is the longest of those. Here is the timeline of events since her run to the fourth round of Wimbledon two years ago: