US Open Champion Emma Raducanu makes her eagerly anticipated return to the tennis court this week as the 18-year-old enters the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California. After claiming her incredible first major title in New York last month the Kent teenager is now the British No 1 and has said she is looking forward to getting back to competitve action at the prestigous event, which is often regarded as the ‘fifth Grand Slam’.
Surprisingly, after her success at Flushing Meadows Raducanu decided to end her working relationship with coach Andrew Richardson and has enlisted the help of Jeremy Bates. Bates is a former British No 1 himself and currently works with Katie Boulter and is also the Lawn Tennis Association’s national women’s coach. The Briton has not formally confirmed Bates as her new full-time coach and has hinted she will wait until the end of the season before announcing her permanent trainer.
The Indian Wells tournament will be missing many big names, including World No 1 Ashleigh Barty, Naomi Osaka & veteran Serna Williams. Radacanu has rocketed to No 22 in the world rankings after her impressive performance at the Wimbledon Championships in the summer and her maiden Slam victory at the US Open. She will be hoping to have a strong end to the year with the first Grand Slam of 2022 due to take place in Australia in January.