Emma Raducanu picked up her phone and sent just a single-word text to her former coach Andrew Richardson. ‘Heyyy,’ it read. She barely told another soul.
‘When you get a text from me with, like, a hey with three Ys, you just know something is cooking,’ said Raducanu.
Less than two months later, the duo that combined for Raducanu’s sensational US Open triumph are reunited at the French Open for the first time at a Grand Slam since that sensational night five years ago.
Raducanu flew to the Algarve at the end of last month to train with Richardson at his Ferrer Tennis Academy in Spain and, despite initially insisting they had no plans to form a long-term partnership, confirmed they will now be working together for the rest of the year.
Richardson stood by Raducanu’s side on Court 9 on Friday as she practised with Anastasia Potapova.
The decision to part ways with Richardson just two weeks after that famous night on Arthur Ashe court has long been criticised. Raducanu has burned through eight different permanent coaches since, yet has failed to get past the fourth round of a Grand Slam since, and has not had one since she split with Francisco Roig after defeat at Australian Open.
Emma Raducanu is back working with Andrew Robertson ahead of the French Open beginning
‘When it was developing, of course, in the back of my mind, I’m aware of the judgment that could potentially follow: did she make a mistake, did she regret it, and all these questions that are being asked.
‘I think that I really wanted to just make the decisions for myself and most authentically, and it really just came from a deeper place so I’m really happy that I followed through with it and didn’t necessarily get swayed by any opinions or judgments.
‘That is also why I actually kept it very quiet. When it was happening, I didn’t really tell anyone what I was cooking up until it was done. That was one of the reasons why, but I’m really glad I made the decision for myself.
‘I think at that time it was very difficult to say I made a mistake, because in my life everything changed upside down, and I didn’t really think I had the most handle over the situation. I was being pulled left and right. I didn’t really know what was going on.
‘Everything also happened very quickly then. A lot of experiences over the last few years taught me a lot of what I didn’t want, and it taught me that I really just value having people that I trust and connect with around me.
‘He’s someone I’ve known for over a decade. We have a great chemistry. That was evident every time we worked together.’
Raducanu has played just a single competitive match since March, a first-round defeat in Strasbourg in her first match after rehiring Richardson, after suffering from a post-viral illness but will now have to put that behind her if she is to get the better of clay-court specialist Solana Sierra in the first round.
‘I feel a lot better,’ said Raducanu. ‘I thought I’d completely flipped it but I think there’s just been a little bit of a lingering cough recently but I feel health-wise really good. I think it ebbs and flows with it, but much better in terms of physically.
‘It’s going to be a really tricky first round, especially coming in light on matches, but I’m just proud of how I’m approaching every day, proud of the work I’m putting in.’
Raducanu is one of six Brits in the main draw at Roland-Garros and yesterday qualifier Toby Samuel discovered he will face Australian world number nine Alex de Minaur, the fiancé of Katie Boulter, in the first round.
