Inside Emma Raducanu’s relationship with Francisco Roig after he mocked tennis rivals | Tennis | Sport

Laura Robson has offered a telling insight into Emma Raducanu‘s relationship with her coach Francisco Roig ahead of the Australian Open. The young Brit teamed up with Roig, who previously worked with Rafael Nadal, in the summer of 2025. Their partnership began at last year’s Cincinnati Open and they remain together heading into next week’s Grand Slam at Melbourne Park.

Robson, who will present TNT Sports’ live coverage of the Australian Open, was around Raducanu’s inner circle during the United Cup earlier this month. The former Wimbledon junior champion was impressed with the understanding between Raducanu and Roig behind the scenes. She also revealed the Spaniard even mocked Team GB players over the amount of tea they drank each day.

“They definitely get on really well,” said Robson, speaking to Express Sport. “There were a couple of team lunches and he was always making fun of how many cups of tea the British players were drinking every day.

“He’s got a great sense of humour and they just get on. They’ve got very similar tennis brains, I would say. They both enjoy diving into the tactics, quite technical as well.

“I think she likes that they have that mutual respect and conversation. I can see it lasting for hopefully a good while and I’m sure she feels the same.”

Raducanu will certainly be hoping for a lasting partnership with Roig, having gone through many different coaches since winning the US Open in 2021.

Her next task will be to mount a deep run at the Australian Open, but things were made harder on Thursday when she was handed a nightmare draw.

She will face Thai hopeful Mananchaya Sawangkaew, who entered the draw on a protected ranking, in her opening match. If she gets through, either Suzan Lamens or Anastasia Potapova will await Raducanu in round two.

In the third round, she is projected to come up against Aryna Sabalenka in a potential blockbuster clash between two Grand Slam champions.

“There’s no easy draws in a Grand Slam,” added Robson. “I would say I always feel good about her chances. I was actually out in Perth for the United Cup with the GB team doing TV that week and I know them all really well.

“It was good to hear from her about all the work she’s put in during the off-season and she unfortunately picked up a bit of a foot injury, so it meant she didn’t have much court time in the lead-up to the United Cup.

“She still played a solid amount of tennis that week. She’s been trying to play catch-up in a way, which is why she’s been playing Hobart this week.

“I think she will always back herself, that’s one of her great qualities. She is a big match player. You put her in front of a crowd and she doesn’t seize up like a lot of people. No matter who you play, it’s going to be tough, but yeah, I can always see her going deep.”

Watch every match of the Australian Open live on TNT Sports and discovery+ from January 18.