Emma Raducanu has rehired Andrew Richardson on a formal basis and will return to competition next week in Strasbourg, taking the first step back into tennis after two months out with a post-viral illness. Richardson will be with her at the WTA 500 event, which is part of the buildup to the French Open.
The move reunites Raducanu, 23, with the coach she first worked with in her youth and again in July 2021, when he helped guide her through the breakthrough summer that ended with the US Open title. Raducanu won that tournament as a qualifier without dropping a set, a run that turned her into one of the sport’s biggest names overnight. Less than two weeks later, she chose not to extend the partnership, beginning a long search for stability that has continued ever since.
That search has taken her through a series of short-term arrangements. She worked with Francisco Roig for six months before they split in February. In March, she traveled to Indian Wells with LTA coach Alexis Canter. Her longest coaching spell was with Nick Cavaday, who stayed with her for more than a year before stepping away for personal health matters. Mark Petchey also helped her climb back into the top 30 last year.
The latest trial with Richardson unfolded on clay at the Ferrer Academy in La Nucía, Spain, near Benidorm, where Raducanu trained during a block meant to test whether a formal partnership could work. Her return now gives that experiment a competitive setting just as the clay season turns toward Paris, and as she tries to rebuild rhythm after being sidelined for two months.
Raducanu said she was grateful to reconnect with someone who has known her for more than a decade and that she looked forward to building together one step at a time. For a player who has spent much of the past three years moving from one setup to the next, Strasbourg is more than a tune-up. It is the first test of whether this reunion can last longer than the last one.
