Raducanu in Grand Slam-winning form? 'I'm authentic and creative'

Emma Raducanu will take on Jessica Pegula in the quarter-finals of the Miami Open in arguably the biggest match of her career since winning the 2021 US Open.

Her best run since being crowned US Open champion at the age of 18 continued as she brushed aside American 17th seed Amanda Anisimova in straight sets.

Raducanu did not drop a point on her serve in the first set, which underpinned an impressive performance that saw her move into the top 50 of the world rankings.

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"I've come a long way in the last week since Indian Wells [where Raducanu lost in the first round]," she told Sky Sports Tennis.

"I wasn't necessarily feeling great about my tennis, about everything, but this week I have some really good people around me who I trust and who I have fun with off the court, and that is extremely important.

"When I play my best I am definitely authentic, true to myself and creative. I feel when I am boxed into a regimented way then I am not able to express myself in the same way. So I'm happy with how I realised that this week."

Earlier this month, Raducanu ended her coaching trial with Vladimir Platenik after just two weeks following her first-round exit from Indian Wells, saying it "wasn't quite heading in the right direction".

Currently looking for a permanent presence in her box alongside fitness trainer Yutaka Nakamura, Raducanu has found a short-term solution in working alongside Jane O'Donoghue, her childhood mentor and former LTA coach, and Mark Petchey, a former coach of Andy Murray and commentator and broadcaster on the Tennis Channel.

The 22-year-old admits feeling "comfortable" and "relaxed" in her new environment where she is able to express herself on and off the court.

She said: "I think I'm playing better than in Australia this year. Circumstances change all the time, but for me the biggest thing I'm proud of is just finding the competitive spirit and being there for every ball and drawing that out of myself. I think that's kind of been missing in the last few months and even few years at times.

"I think that's the biggest win for me, just feeling a lot of hunger, feeling on the court competitive, wanting to run down every ball, and that's the biggest win I would say from this week."

Petchey and O'Donoghue 'bring small doses of happiness'

Raducanu has now won four matches in a row for the first time since that incredible victory in New York and it is the first time she has reached the last-eight of a WTA 1000 event.

Petchey is a former Davis Cup player for Great Britain who was involved in Raducanu's development as a teenager in the years before her US Open victory.

"There's more switching on and off, rather than be 'on' the entire time," explained Raducanu.

"I'm someone who works really hard and can be really intense, but sometimes too intense. It's harder to be extremely focused when you need to be on the match court because you're focused from the first minute to the last.

"So I think just being able to switch off and have fun with them and play Spikeball before the match, and we just create certain routines. They bring small doses of happiness that I guess just keep you going, the small things."

Working with Platenik 'wasn't right at the time'

Raducanu also explained her reasons why there is a sense of trust and synergy in the team following the exit of Platenik after a brief stint.

She said: "He is a great coach. He's so experienced. He's worked with so many players and brought them up to the top and developed players. I respect him a lot as a coach.

"It just wasn't right at the time and I'm not sure going forward, but I think this week was a great eye-opener to when I'm happy and expressive and myself.

"Just having people that I've known for a very long time, since before the US Open, and just those familiar faces is the most valuable thing, for this week at least.

"It's difficult because I just met him and it's difficult to kind of build many years of connection straight away."

Raducanu added: "I wasn't feeling great after Indian Wells, but to come to Miami - and then after I stopped with Vlado - to just have familiar faces, people that I knew, people that have really gone through the trenches with me, but also can kind of lift me up at the same time, I think made a big difference.

"Just having them around, people that I really trust, I think that's probably when I started feeling a bit better off the court. That translated on the court. I was freer."

From long days to feeling more relaxed

Raducanu explained the differences in her warm-up routine, which her team have adjusted in Miami, to help make the Bromley star more relaxed ahead of her matches.

"I think before even the first half of the first section of this year, I would be so locked in," said Raducanu, who is on the brink of becoming British No 1 again should she reach the semi-finals in Miami.

"Every warm-up would be an hour long. It would just be not much talking, just so focused. A lot of long tennis sessions, long gym sessions and just long days all the time. Then by the time I played the match, I was quite tired.

"I think that's something that we adjusted this week, bringing more fun elements into it, shortening certain things in warm-ups and just adding things that are outside the box.

"To warm up, for example, not just running up and down in a straight line, which can be a bit more tedious, and just playing a game and playing three different sports before we warm-up, getting a good sweat on, laughing. Then you go onto the court feeling a lot more relaxed and every part of you is just looser.

"I think it's worked so far this week. It's definitely a note to take home for me."

Henman: She reaping the rewards for a lot of hard work

Tim Henman says Raducanu has shown "some really positive signs" ahead of her crunch meeting with last year's US Open finalist, Pegula.

The former world No 4 told Sky Sports: "First and foremost we're a results-based industry here and it's the fact that she's been on court competing and winning. I think that second match against [Emma] Navarro, to come through in those circumstances, she played some brilliant tennis. Navarro served for the match but Emma kept digging deep and found a way to get the job done.

"You reflect on the tournament schedule this year. She's played a lot of tournaments and I think that's a big positive. She hasn't had the results but just the fact that she's out there competing, she doesn't seem to be picking up those little injuries that have set her back so I think she's reaping the rewards for a lot of hard work on the court, in the gym, working on that fitness."

Physical trainer Yutaka Nakamura, who has previously worked with Maria Sharapova and Naomi Osaka, was added to the team to help improve Raducanu's physical robustness and athletic potential and the signs are looking positive.

"In the big picture, it's still very early days," said Henman. "They've only been working a matter of months. Normally you're talking a matter of years for a relationship to build. That foundation of the physical work but also the trust and understanding of Emma's body so I think there are some really positive signs. I really think Emma's in a good place."

Raducanu vs Pegula: Head-to-Head

Raducanu and Pegula have split their two previous meetings. Pegula won in straight sets on the hard courts of Cincinnati in 2022, but Raducanu posted an upset win on grass at Eastbourne last year.

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