- Emma Raducanu lost 7-6, 6-4 to Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon on Friday
- British No1 says coming days will be tough but is determined to get back to action
In the aftermath of one of the most pulsating nights of her career, Emma Raducanu retreated to the safety of the locker room, wept, and had a KitKat.
From there the moving on began: first she must sort through her emotions. Then she must sort out her coaching situation.
To begin with the feelings, it will take time for the pain of defeat to transmute gradually into the pride of having run world No1 Aryna Sabalenka so close.
‘I’ll probably find it tough to sleep, it’s going to take me a few days,’ said Raducanu.
‘But at the same time it really motivates me. I want to get straight back to work.’
The general sense from the tennis world is that this was a glimpse of the Raducanu we saw at the 2021 US Open. Chris Evert, speaking on ESPN, said: ‘Emma has had a rough, rough four years but she has found renewed purpose in her game.
‘She was ahead in both sets against the No.1 player in the world. That has to give her confidence. Renewed purpose, renewed joy. She is on her way back.
‘And she has a great coach too.’
And there is the rub – does she really have a coach at all? Mark Petchey came into the fold in Miami, after Raducanu prematurely ended a coaching trial with Slovak Vlado Platenik.
It was an arrangement described at the time as nothing more permanent than a friend helping a friend – and indeed permanence seemed impossible given Petchey’s broadcast commitments as a freelance pundit and commentator.
He missed a match in Rome and was so busy with TNT Sport at the French Open that he would come to practice in his studio work clothes.
There has been plenty of scepticism in tennis circles about the viability of the arrangement but the results – and, more importantly, Raducanu’s demeanour – brook no argument.
She made the quarters in Miami, the last 16 in Rome, the quarters at Queen’s and now produced one of her best displays of the year, albeit in defeat. Raducanu herself rated Petchey as an 11 out of 10 and he has clearly brought out a level of creativity and freedom into her game.
‘He obviously has his commentating commitments,’ said Raducanu after the Sabalenka match. ‘He agreed to help me until the end of Wimbledon and then we see from there because he gave up some work to be with me here, which I really appreciate. That’s a conversation we need to have after a few days and the dust settles a little bit.’
The vast majority of Petchey’s work is with US television, so he will be busy for the upcoming hard-court swing. There is the possibility, of course, that he puts his day job to the side for now and goes full-time – although by historical precedent, ‘Emma Raducanu’s coach’ ranks only slightly north of Labour Chancellor when it comes to job security.
So if they do agree to continue on an ad-hoc basis, Raducanu’s next move should be to hire a permanent travelling coach, someone who can be a steady presence and work alongside Petchey where his media obligations allow.
Raducanu’s performance against Sabalenka on Friday night rippled with promise; now is the time for her to put the nuts and bolts in place to allow that promise to flourish.
