Nick Kyrgios has defended Emma Raducanu and commented on the Brit’s coaching situation amid her strong run at the 2025 Miami Open.
Raducanu has bounced back from a difficult start to the year to reach the fourth round of the WTA 1000 event in Miami.
The world No 60 had lost six of her previous seven matches heading into the Miami Open, but her three consecutive wins at the Hard Rock Stadium have moved her season record to 6-6.
The 22-year-old dismantled 188th-ranked Japanese wildcard Sayaka Ishii 6-2, 6-1 in the first round before edging out world No 10 Emma Navarro 7-6(6), 2-6, 7-6(3) in the second round.
In the third round, Raducanu was leading world No 48 McCartney Kessler 6-1, 3-0 when her opponent retired with an injury.
The former world No 10 will face 17th seed Amanda Anisimova in the last 16 in Miami. Raducanu won the pair’s only previous encounter 6-3, 7-5 in the second round of the Australian Open in January.
Before her campaign in Miami, Raducanu split with coach Vladimir Platenik after just one match — a 3-6, 2-6 loss to Moyuka Uchijima at the Indian Wells Open. She has faced some criticism for the swift decision to cut ties with another coach.
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Raducanu has been joined by Mark Petchey and Jane O’Donoghue — two coaches she had previously worked with — for the Miami Open.
After Raducanu’s win over Kessler, Kyrgios took aim at the 2021 US Open winner ‘s critics and suggested having a coach is “overrated.”
“People awfully quiet that Raducanu is winning now – where all the experts at now? lol coach’s overrated,” the former world No 13 wrote on X.
Kyrgios defeated Mackenzie McDonald in the first round of the Miami Open to earn his first win since October 2022. The 29-year-old was then beaten by Karen Khachanov in his second match.
Following her win against Kessler, Raducanu told Sky Sports: “I returned really well and from the first point, I was putting pressure on her serve.
“The impact that can have on a match when someone isn’t feeling great is big. I was imposing myself from the first ball.
“I look a lot of confidence from playing Emma [Navarro] in my last match. Three hours in the heat, I’m really proud of myself for the way I bounced back.
“I have had no big injuries [this year] and that’s been a big issue for me over the last few years.
“I’m also getting to more balls in the corners and I have developed the confidence and hand skills to do something with it when I get there.”
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