Emma Raducanu has confirmed that she will not keep working with coach Jeremy Bates after Indian Wells. The recent US Open champion ended her partnership with Andrew Richardson, her youth coach who worked with her in Flushing Meadows, following her historic run to the title and is currently looking for someone with more tour-level experience. She has been working with Bates while in Indian Wells for the BNP Paribas Open but is set to be without a coach for her upcoming events in Moscow and Romania.
Raducanu has split with two coaches in the last few months, and is currently looking for someone with more experience on the WTA Tour as she makes the transition to life as a full-time pro at the top of the rankings.
The world No.21 had her first breakthrough at Wimbledon earlier this year, receiving a last-minute wild card while ranked No.338 in the world, and storming to the second week before retiring in the fourth-round with breathing difficulties.
She ended her coaching partnership with Nigel Sears – Andy Murray’s father-in-law and former coach of Ana Ivanovic and Anett Kontaveit – shortly after working with him during the grass-court season, and reunited with LTA youth coach Andrew Richardson, who has known Raducanu for almost a decade.
Alongside Richardson, she made her first WTA 125k final at the Chicago Challenger, reaching a then-career high of world No.150, and arrived in Flushing Meadows for US Open qualifying, managing to win ten matches on the bounce without dropping a set en route to her first title – a Grand Slam.
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The win saw Raducanu make history as the first-ever qualifier to win a Major, and the first woman to win the title in just her second Grand Slam appearance, propelling her up to 23 in the world rankings, where she has since been able to climb up two further places.
Following her historic triumph in New York, the Bromley teenager announced her decision to part ways with Richardson, coming as a surprise to many, as she eyed a new coach with more experience at tour-level to guide her through the unknown of competing on the WTA Tour year-round.
“It’s tough to have that conversation with anyone, but I think for me like that’s just really what I need,” Raducanu said after ending her partnership with her youth coach.
“I felt like I just really need someone right now who has been through that and can really guide me along the way because I’m still very, very new to everything.”
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Playing her first tournament post-US Open in Indian Wells, the 18-year-old has been spotted training with Jeremy Bates, another LTA coach, but explained she was waiting to find the “right” person to coach her long-term.
Speaking ahead of the WTA 1000 event, Raducanu said: “Jeremy is part of women’s tennis at the LTA so while he’s here he’s helping me out. But going forward, I’m just going to wait and try to find the right person. I’m not going to rush into anything and yeah I want to make sure that I make the right decision.”
She has since announced that she will not be continuing to work with Bates on a short-term basis when she plays the upcoming WTA events in Moscow and Romania later this month.
“No. Jeremy Bates is in women’s tennis at the LTA,” Raducanu said, when asked if she would consider working with him until the end of the season.
