Konta’s praise for ruthless Raducanu
WIMBLEDON Emma Raducanu has been praised for her ruthless approach to hiring and firing coaches by former British number one Johanna Konta.
Raducanu’s high turnover of coaches during her career is frequently used as a stick to beat her with but Konta believes it shows maturity and a clear-minded approach.
Citing Raducanu’s decision to miss the French Open and the Olympics, for which she has also received criticism, Konta said: “I think this is where Emma’s really good and very mature. She has a thought, she has a direction in mind, and she goes for it and she makes the decision, and I think that’s a very mature approach for a young player.
“And the same thing with her coaching team. I wish I did that more where I felt like a coaching situation wasn’t working, I didn’t wait for it to run its course because of how I thought the media would start speaking about it.
“I really admire her for her conviction in how she goes about deciding things for her career.”
Raducanu’s current coaching partnership with Nick Cavaday has endured since the beginning of the season, while at Wimbledon she also had Jane O’donoghue, another former childhood coach who now works in finance, by her side.
Raducanu has made big strides over the grasscourt season, posting her first two victories over top-10 players, climbing back into the top 100 and equalling her best run at Wimbledon by reaching the fourth round.
Her victor – qualifier Lulu Sun – meanwhile was beaten yesterday as Donna Vekic reached her first grand slam semi-final.
Sun won the first set and looked on course to become only the second woman to come through qualifying and reach the last four.
But Vekic, the 28-year-old from Croatia, took a tight second set and then ran away with the third for a 5-7 6-4 6-1 victory. “It was a really tough match, she played unbelievable, I feel like she really pushed me to my limits,” said an emotional Vekic.