Emma Raducanu makes 27-word statement as she re-hires former coach

British No.1 Emma Raducanu has reunited with Andrew Richardson, the coach who guided her to the 2021 US Open.

The partnership will begin immediately ahead of Raducanu’s return to action at the Internationaux de Strasbourg before the French Open later this month.

Getty

Raducanu hasn’t played since Indian Wells in March owing to a post-viral symptoms following a chest infection in February.

She recently pulled out of the Italian Open just 30 minutes after speaking to the media in Rome despite giving no indication she had been set to withdraw.

“The last two months, in the beginning, it was quite difficult,” she said. “I wasn’t feeling the best physically and I think it had just been lingering for a while.

“Whereas the last three weeks, I think I’ve really turned a corner and I feel so much better. And that’s a really positive thing for me.”

Raducanu had been set to face Solana Sierra or a qualifier in the Italian capital earlier this month, while she also sat out the Madrid Open owing to a hand injury.

She did, though, avoid an £11,000 fine for not fulfilling her media duties at the WTA event in Rome.

However, on the day before the tournament in Strasbourg begins, Raducanu has confirmed that she has reunited with Richardson.

“Grateful to have reconnected with someone who has known me for over a decade now and looking forward to building together one iteration at a time,” Raducanu said.

The 23-year-old was criticised for splitting with Richardson shortly after her 2021 US Open success.

GETTY

Raducanu defeated Canadian Leylah Annie Fernandez 6-4, 6-3 at Flushing Meadows five years ago, marking her only Grand Slam success to date.

At the time, Raducanu felt she needed a coach with WTA tour experience in order to take the next step in her career.

A string of short-term appointments, including Sebastian Sachs and Francisco Roig, has since seen Raducanu return to Richardson.

It follows a similar pattern of the Brit utilising coaches she has worked with previously.

Mark Petchey is one Raducanu has worked with multiple times, while she routinely turns to another former coach, Jane O’Donoghue, for advice.

A lack of action in 2026 owing to illness means Raducanu is set to drop to 37th in the rankings.

As a result, Raducanu will be unseeded at Roland Garros, which gets underway on 24 May.