Emma Raducanu reunites with mentor after saying ‘not looking for coach’ | Tennis | Sport
Emma Raducanu is set to bring Mark Petchey back into the fold for Indian Wells. The British No. 1 enjoyed an ad hoc relationship with Petchey for a few months in 2025, when she had also been left without a full-time coach. A year later, Raducanu has found herself in the same situation after parting ways with Francisco Roig last month.
But according to The Times, Petchey will assist Raducanu on an ad hoc basis again at the upcoming WTA 1000 tournament in Indian Wells, which gets underway on Wednesday. The British coach and pundit is a trusted figure for Raducanu, who also briefly worked with Petchey before her 2021 breakthrough.
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Last year, she reunited with Petchey on an informal basis at the Miami Open – the second tournament in the ‘Sunshine Double’, following Indian Wells. They enjoyed immediate success, and Raducanu stormed into the quarter-finals. Petchey continued working with her throughout the clay and grass swings while juggling his duties as a Tennis Channel commentator.
When he ultimately had to step away to focus on his broadcasting duties, Raducanu travelled to a couple of tournaments with Canter before hiring Spanish coach Roig. Their partnership came to an end following the recent Australian Open , and has since been working with Canter and Stewart.
Ahead of the Sunshine Double, Raducanu told the Guardian that she wasn’t on the hunt for a coach, and was happy with her current dynamic. “Right now I wouldn’t say I’m actively looking for a coach,” she said. “Right now I have Alexis in my corner. He knows me as a person. He knows me as a player.”
The 2021 US Open champion enjoys working with people who know her well, especially those who had been in her circle before her historic triumph in Flushing Meadows five years ago. And Petchey is exactly that. It’s not known whether he will continue assisting Raducanu at the Miami Open or beyond.
When Raducanu and Petchey ended their informal partnership last summer, the 55-year-old – who also worked with Andy Murray – said he wasn’t planning to change his number, and that Raducanu always knew where he was if she needed anything. And Petchey confirmed that he had been messaging with Raducanu on the Tennis Channel’s Big T Podcast earlier this month, Petchey also revealed that he had been messaging with Raducanu.
“We’ve messaged a few times. I did watch her play. It was nice to see her get some wins, it was nice to see some confidence, it was nice to see the fight was back. She was playing the way she wants to play, that was something, I think, she felt that she had lost a little bit in recent times,” he said following her run to the final in Cluj.
