Emma Raducanu has explained why she has had five coaches in two years, when she will make her comeback from injury and her Olympic ambitions with Paris 2024 on the horizon
Friday 20 October 2023 10:25, UK
Emma Raducanu says her high turnover of coaches is down to them not being able to "keep up" with her questions.
The 2021 US Open champion is yet to appoint a new coach having been through five in two years after splitting with Sebastian Sachs in June.
"I ask my coaches a lot of questions," she told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"On certain occasions they haven't been able to keep up with the questions I've asked and maybe that's why it ended.
"It's something I've always done. I keep provoking and asking questions to coaches and challenging their thinking as well.
"I'm not someone that you can just tell me what do and I'll do it, I need to understand why and then I'll do it."
Raducanu's first coach was Nigel Sears, who left after she reached the fourth round of Wimbledon in 2021, before securing her maiden Grand Slam title in New York with Andrew Richardson two months later.
Torben Beltz had a short spell as her coach between November 2021 and April 2022, before being replaced by Dimitri Tursunov, who warned of "red flags" if Raducanu continued to listen to too many voices.
Raducanu has not played competitive tennis since losing to Jelena Ostapenko in Stuttgart back in April as a result of surgery on both wrists and an ankle in May.
While the 20-year-old is hoping to return to the tour for the start of the next season and the Paris Olympics are on the horizon, she is being realistic about her chances when it comes to going for gold for Team GB in 2024.
"Obviously, the Olympics is such a big thing in sport," said Raducanu.
"I think I could play another four if I really wanted to, so this one isn't the immediate rush or pressure, it's just about getting back on court.
"I love the Slams but I do want to have the Olympic experience.
"I'll just see how it goes, if I even qualify and how it goes from there."
