Emma Raducanu is back with a bang at the Lexus Eastbourne Open! The 22-year-old faced a stern test in her opening match against America’s Ann Li. Li snatched the first set after a tough tiebreaker. Doubters wondered if Raducanu could rally from a set down. She answered emphatically. Raducanu showcased her grass-court prowess with a thrilling 6-7, 6-3, 6-1 victory. The win sent the crowd to their feet. Raducanu got emotional—triumph after years of struggling for consistency and juggling coaching changes.

After sealing the match, Raducanu fought back tears at the net. She shook hands with Li as the crowd roared. The moment felt cathartic. Her 2025 season has been marred by inconsistency. A recurring back injury forced her to withdraw from events like the Berlin Open. Coaching changes have also kept her off balance. The situation remains fluid. Raducanu’s coaching team keeps evolving. After a brief trial with Vladimir Platenik, she now works with Mark Petchey for the grass-court season. The goal is stability; Raducanu is looking for rhythm.

In her on-court interview, Emma Raducanu smiled brightly when asked about her new coaching dynamic with Petchey. She said, “It’s working really well. I had head coach Fran Jones and assistant coach Mark Petchey out there today but it was really nice to have a lot of support. It’s been going well with Mark and I’m looking forward to playing tomorrow and looking forward to Wimbledon as well.” That’s a promising sign, right?

Mark Petchey brings pedigree. He famously coached Andy Murray in his early years, helping him crack the Top 50 and win his first ATP title. Petchey and Emma Raducanu joined forces in March 2025, ahead of the Miami Open. They had a brief stint together in 2020, too. Petchey is not the first in her coaching carousel!

Raducanu has seen a significant turnover in her coaching setup since turning pro, with Petchey becoming at least her eighth coach. Her coaching changes include Nigel Sears, Andrew Richardson (who guided her to the US Open title), Torben Beltz, Dmitry Tursunov, Sebastian Sachs, Nick Cavaday (who has had two stints), and Vladimir Platenik (briefly in 2025), before Petchey joined her team this year.

With Petchey, she started showing promise. She reached the quarterfinals in Miami and at Queen’s Club just last week. Now, she advances to the next round at Eastbourne. Can Emma Raducanu match—or surpass—her quarterfinal run from last year? Only time will tell!

During the Madrid Open, she had expressed that the coaching situation with Mark Petchey was still in talks. However, she didn’t hesitate to reveal how she felt about her partnership with him.

Emma Raducanu shows confidence in reuniting with Mark Petchey

Raducanu chatted with Sky Sports in Madrid and was asked if her current coaching situation after Miami is “formal.” “No, we haven’t made anything formal. It’s pretty informal for now, but it’s something that’s going really well and he’s someone that I feel like I can trust because I’ve known him for so long, before the US Open when I won it,” she shared.

She lit up talking about their “thought-provoking” conversations and the comfort she finds in their dynamic: “I think for now, it’s working really well and it’s nice to kind of be with someone I feel familiar and feel comfortable with.” That same vibe of calm, she hinted at during Miami, seems to be traveling with her to Madrid.

Her coaching journey has been anything but quiet—critics have called out the number of changes. “I’m that kind of person who needs a plan and needs preparation,” Raducanu once said, owning her process. This season’s brief stint with Vlado Platenik was rocky; meant to last two weeks, it petered out quickly.

Platenik even told Dennik N, “Emma also approached me in a similar situation right after a great success (in 2021), which is why I said it could be coaching suic*de.” But he also offered hope: “But now she is in a completely different position. She’s already gone through hell, she’s already been through the worst.” The hoped-for French Open run-up never happened, marking Raducanu’s seventh coaching split in three years.

Now, heading into a rematch with Maya Joint at Eastbourne, the question is whether Raducanu can harness her recent lessons and trust in Mark to notch another win. Can Emma Raducanu keep building momentum and silence the skeptics? Drop your thoughts below