Grand Slam champion Emma Raducanu has announced another coaching split following her second-round exit at the Australian Open. The 23-year-old, who captured the world’s attention with her US Open victory as a qualifier nearly five years ago, has experienced a turbulent career marked by frequent coaching changes.
Raducanu’s latest partnership with Spanish coach Francis Roig, which began in August last year, has already come to an end. The announcement was made on Thursday through a heartfelt social media post featuring a photo of the duo on a golf course.
“Francis, thank you for our time together,” Raducanu wrote. “You have been more than a coach to me and I will cherish the many good times we spent together on and off the court. While we have come to the conclusion together that we ought not to move forward, please know that I am very grateful for all you have taught me and fond of our time shared.”
The Coaching Carousel
Roig, who previously worked with tennis legend Rafael Nadal for over 15 years, had a relatively brief tenure with Raducanu. Before joining her team, he also coached Italy’s Matteo Berrettini and American champion Sloane Stephens. Roig now joins a long list of former Raducanu coaches, including Nick Cavaday, Nigel Sears, Andrew Richardson, Mark Petchey, Vlado Platenik, Seb Sachs, Dimitry Tursunov, and Torben Beltz.
Cavaday, who was Raducanu’s mentor during her junior years, most recently coached her in 2025 before stepping down due to health reasons. Platenik’s stint lasted only two weeks last year as Raducanu navigated the void left by Cavaday. Sears and Richardson were instrumental during her 2021 breakthroughs at Wimbledon and the US Open, respectively.
Seeking a New Playing Style
Raducanu hinted at a possible coaching change after her defeat in Melbourne, expressing a desire to alter her playing style. “I want to be playing a different way. I just want to hit the ball to the corners and hard,” she said post-match. “I feel like I’m doing all this variety, and it’s not doing what I want it to do.”
She also pointed to changes in her forehand as a factor in her decision. “I think it’s something that probably happened in the last few weeks,” Raducanu noted. “It’s not something that I really wanted to happen, so I need to kind of look at that and shorten it, because I feel like it’s good in certain conditions when it’s a little bit slower. But on these very quick courts, it doesn’t really work, so I need to adjust that.”
Ranking and Future Prospects
Despite her recent struggles, Raducanu is set to remain world No.29 when the post-Australian Open rankings are confirmed. Her journey back towards the top has been steady since she fell to No.299 amid injuries in 2023. However, she has not reached a final at any level since her stunning 2021 US Open triumph.
In 2025, Raducanu lost to Iga Swiatek at the Australian Open (third round) and French Open (second round) before being defeated by world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon (third round) and Elena Rybakina at the US Open (third round).
This year’s Australian Open saw her beaten by world No.55 Anastasia Potapova, following a loss to Australia’s world No.204 Taylah Preston in a Hobart lead-up tournament. As Raducanu prepares for her next tournament in Romania, the tennis world watches closely to see who she will choose as her next coach and whether she can recapture the form that led her to Grand Slam glory.
