Emma Raducanu Drops Honest Take on New Coach’s Impact as Dangerous Threat Looms in Cincinnati

Emma Raducanu has been carving a steady path of high-quality tennis in recent months, brimming with confidence on court and radiating positivity off it. Since March, she collaborated on an ad hoc basis with Mark Petchey, but his broadcasting commitments kept him from a full-time role. Now, a fresh chapter has begun, the Francisco Roig era, opening in style with a victory in Cincinnati against Olga Danilović. With her game sharpened and her spirit ignited, the Brit has made her feelings clear about her new coach, setting the tone for a fierce battle ahead against Aryna Sabalenka.

The Francisco Roig era of Emma Raducanu’s career roared to life in Cincinnati, where the 30th seed dismantled Serbia’s Olga Danilovic 6-3, 6-2 under a punishing sun. Her rise has been fuelled by ruthless consistency against lower-ranked rivals, boasting a 19-4 record in the past year. For a player who once battled to stitch wins together, she now stands match-tough, hardened, and unflinching.

As she steels herself for a mammoth showdown with Aryna Sabalenka, Raducanu has revealed just how profoundly her new coaching setup has worked wonders. The synergy is clear: her shots sharper, her composure calmer, her fire fiercer. This is not just momentum; it’s a rebirth, and Sabalenka will feel the storm.

Under the hot lights and the raw hum of post-match adrenaline, Emma Raducanu stepped in front of the Tennis Channel camera, her smile hinting at both relief and conviction. When asked about her new coaching arrangement, she didn’t hold back. “It’s going really well. You know, in all areas. I think we got on great off the court, which is important when you’re spending so much time with someone traveling. And obviously on court. He’s amazing. He’s got so much experience. And then in the matches as well,” she said, her words flowing with the ease of a player finally in sync with her corner.

Then came the reflection on the here and now. “Today was our first match together, and you never know how it’s going to go, so I’m really happy. It went in a positive way, a positive start. But also, you know, just having him there is a big sign of assurance and calm in the matches. No panic, no stress. And I think that he helps me with that, too.” Her voice carried the weight of someone who has been through the grind and learned the value of quiet steadiness.

Her new coach, Francis Roig, is no stranger to the inner sanctums of tennis greatness. A former world No. 60 in singles back in 1992, Roig became a fixture in Rafael Nadal’s camp for 18 years, sharing the grind, the triumphs, and the endless hours alongside Toni Nadal. He stepped away from that legendary partnership in 2022, later lending his expertise to Matteo Berrettini during one of the Italian’s injury-laden seasons.

For Raducanu, whose career has been peppered with high-profile coaching shifts, this isn’t just another new name on the roster. This feels like a move made at the right time, with the right voice, in the right moment of her evolution. Roig brings the kind of mileage you can’t fake, the kind that shapes champions.

But fairy tales in tennis always meet their proving grounds. A first-round bye, courtesy of her seeded status, handed her a smooth entry. Now the mountain looms: world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. The Belarusian powered past Marketa Vondrousova 7-5, 6-1 to set up their third-round clash.

Raducanu hasn’t forgotten their fierce Wimbledon battle last month, the match that felt like a storm contained within white lines. Now, under new guidance, she faces the same storm again, this time armed with a voice in her corner that has weathered almost every tempest tennis can conjure.

Emma Raducanu reflects on her last Aryna Sabalenka encounter

Under the glowing studio lights of the same Tennis Channel, Emma Raducanu began by speaking of her latest triumph. But in mere moments, the conversation was swept away, carried to a memory she still holds like gold. It was her Wimbledon clash against Aryna Sabalenka, a match that still beats loudly in her mind.

When asked how she remembered that duel, her face lit with a fire only the greatest sporting moments can spark. “It was incredible. I think it was probably my favorite match to be a part of in terms of atmosphere. It was electric. I’ve never felt anything like it. I’ve never heard anything like it. With the roof closed, especially, everything was amplified,” she said, her words a vivid echo of that night’s storm.

Raducanu’s memory didn’t stop there; it dove deeper into the pulse of the Centre Court crowd. “And the home support, of course, was incredible, and I had chances in that match, which was, for me, a great thing because I took a lot of confidence, I was on the right track. I think obviously grass is a different surface from here, that it can play completely differently, but, you know, to push the world number one to such great lengths. It did give me a lot of confidence and just the atmosphere,” she explained, her voice still charged with the crowd’s roar.

A month ago, beneath the roaring Centre Court roof and before 15,000 electrified souls, Raducanu rose high and fierce, staring down the sport’s mightiest warrior. Set point in hand, she stood on the cliff edge of history, but Sabalenka, battle-scarred and unyielding, climbed higher still, wrenching the moment away with a 7-6 (6), 6-4 victory. The air cracked, and Raducanu’s dream slipped like sand through her fingers.

Now, the stage shifts to Cincinnati. The lights are different, the court is new, yet the stakes remain fierce. Will Raducanu summon that Wimbledon fire once more? Or will Sabalenka’s steel prove unbreakable again? The question lingers like the final note of an unfinished song: waiting for the next verse to be written.