Tennis legend Martina Navratilova believes Emma Raducanu‘s biggest mistake has been continually changing her coaches – rather than the coaching she has received. The British star has endured a chaotic few seasons mixed with injury and poor form since her stunning US Open victory as a qualifier in 2021.
The 23-year-old has come nowhere close to hitting similar heights again, having reached just one final – a WTA 250 in Transylvania – since her famous victory in New York five years ago. One criticism has been her continued changing of coaches, including replacing the coach who guided her to that Grand Slam victory in the immediate aftermath.
The Brit recently parted ways with Rafael Nadal‘s former coach, Francisco Roig, after her disappointing second-round exit at the Australian Open in January. In total, Raducanu has worked with seven different full-time coaches since her breakthrough summer in 2021.
And the world No.23 has recently suggested that previous coaches have incorrectly changed how she should be playing. This was said to be one of the reasons why her partnership with Roig ended.
But 18-time Grand Slam singles champion Navratilova has told Sky Sports that Raducanu’s issues stem from her constant coaching changes.
She said: “You need somebody full-time. You don’t need to have a great coach all the time.
“Maybe somebody even part-time, which is kind of what she’s got. But you still have to stay consistent and get this person to get to know you, get the history and give them a chance to make a difference. You can’t expect results to come right away – that’s a long process.”
The 69-year-old has also shared her belief that the sheer number of coaching changes has done more harm than good for Raducanu.
She added: “You need to buy into the coach and stay there for a little bit longer. I think that’s the biggest mistake – she’s been through too many people and then you get so many different ideas and you don’t quite know which one to stick with.”
Her most recent tournament in Indian Wells saw her reach the third round before losing in just 52 minutes to the world number six Amanda Anisimova.