After Emma Raducanu won the US Open title in 2021 in a stunning fashion, not many may have foreseen what lay ahead for her. The British star has struggled with form and injuries over the past three seasons and has even had an inconsistent year so far. Despite boasting tremendous potential, Raducanu has failed to deliver when it mattered the most and finds herself in a challenging position now. After making changes to her coaching team, Raducanu suffered an unexpected blow ahead of the US Open.

Raducanu has made it the main draw of the Cincinnati Open but finds herself in the brutal first half of the draw that also includes the likes of Aryna Sabalenka, Iga Swiatek, and Amanda Anisimova. Although the Brit has been handed a bye in the opening round, the real challenge for Raducanu starts from the second round itself, as she’ll take on the winner of the match between Olga Danilovic and Katie Boulter.

Even if Raducanu manages to emerge triumphant in the second round, the potential challenge of Aryna Sabalenka will loom in the third round. Raducanu’s path ahead is no more brutal than if she could likely face one of Leylah Fernandez or Liudmila Samsonova. Subsequently, the path would only get tougher for Raducanu as the likes of Madison Keys, Iga Swiatek, and Coco Gauff lie ahead. With the US Open fast approaching, Raducanu would look to make the most out of the Cincinnati Open.

The former US Open champion recently participated in the National Bank Open but lost in the third round tamely against Amanda Anisimova. Meanwhile, for Raducanu, the upsetting Cincinnati draw comes after she recently hired Rafael Nadal’s ex-coach, Francisco Roig, as her full-time coach for the remainder of the 2025 season. If all goes well, who knows, the two might even look to extend their partnership. However, just days after the start of their partnership, Roig has already received a strong piece of advice on dealing with Raducanu.

Change of approach needed to deal with Emma Raducanu?

Before teaming up with Raducanu, Roig worked with the likes of Nadal and Matteo Berrettini. Interestingly, Roig has never coached players on the WTA Tour, and fellow coach Davide Sanguinetti explained how and why Roig would have to change his approach while coaching the British star.

He said, “We definitely need to be more sensitive to girls, who have different ways of interacting. It was new to me; I’m learning and adapting.” Like Roig, Sanguinetti also worked just with the ATP stars before teaming up with Elena Rybakina a few months back.

Meanwhile, Roig isn’t the only one on Raducanu’s coaching team. She will also have the services of Mark Petchey in an advisory role, but Roig will be leading her coaching team. Although Raducanu sounds confident that this change would work in her favor, she would have to take it one step at a time before she starts challenging for big titles. However, it will be a tough start for Raducanu at Cincinnati, given that she is in the brutal first half of the draw.