Speaking to Tennis365, legendary coach Rick Macci has said it made “no sense” for Emma Raducanu to split with Andrew Richardson following her US Open victory.
Raducanu won her only career title to date in astonishing fashion at the 2021 US Open, where — as an 18-year-old, 150th-ranked qualifier — she won 10 matches without dropping a set across qualifying and the main draw.
Shortly after her triumph, Raducanu made the shock move to part ways with Richardson — a former British player who coached her during her stunning run in New York.
Since then, Raducanu has worked with five different permanent coaches, as well as a host of others on a trial or short-term basis.
The Brit rehired Richardson as her coach in May, and she reached the final at the Queen’s Club Championships in June in just her third tournament since they reunited.
The 23-year-old was then forced to miss Wimbledon due to a stress fracture in her right leg.
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In an exclusive interview with Tennis365, Macci — a former coach of Serena and Venus Williams — weighed in on Raducanu’s choice not to keep working with Richardson in 2021.
“Yeah, that made no sense back in the day, and I told everybody,” said the American.
“But when you get fame and fortune… I don’t know if it’s her decision at that age.
“You got agents involved, and you got parents involved, and they think the grass is greener… and it became a little more slippery.”
Asked if coaching stability is what Raducanu needs, Macci said: “It cuts both ways. Sometimes, a different voice can be good. It depends on who’s saying it. It’s such a tricky thing.
“It’s like Iga Swiatek, she went to [Rafael] Nadal, and these people are helping her on clay, and you can say, ‘Okay, well that didn’t work out too well.’
“Everybody’s a little different. On the pro tour, it’s not as much technical or reconstructive surgery. It’s a little more motivational and strategic.
“So, there’s no reason for her (Raducanu) to flip the script and have so many different coaches. I never could figure that whole situation out.
“But her best coach, who has all the answers, is the one in mirror.”
The post Emma Raducanu decision that ‘made no sense’ questioned by Serena Williams’ former coach appeared first on Tennis365.
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