Emma Raducanu
US Open champion Emma Raducanu has confirmed she is looking forward to getting down to work with her new coach Torben Beltz after her breakthrough season came to an end with a defeat.
Raducanu was born in Toronto and raised in London. She made her WTA Tour debut in June 2021.
Raducanu, 18, lost 6-1 6-7 (0-7) 7-5 to China’s Wang Xinyu on Tuesday before confirming Torben Beltz will be her new coach. Beltz comes in with vast experience, as he has coached Angelique Kerber when she won the Australian Open and US Open titles in 2016.
However, the 33-year-old revealed on Monday that she has again parted ways with Beltz, paving the way for him to begin work with Raducanu. After the split, Raducanu said: “You guys cracked it.”
The German will link up with Raducanu as she will start preparing for Australian Open 2022 soon. The Grand Slam will start on January 17.
The US Open champion has been searching for a coach since ending her short-term stint with Andrew Richardson following her stunning win in New York which saw her become the first qualifier in tennis history to win a Grand Slam title.
That was a surprise to many within tennis but Raducanu highlighted the need to have someone experienced in the women’s game beside her and she will certainly have that in 44-year-old Beltz.
Talking about her upcoming partnership with Beltz told Sky Sports:
“It’s obviously a great privilege to be working with such an experienced coach.”
“I’m definitely very excited to work with him throughout the pre-season and into next year so things are looking up and it’s a very, very positive feeling, very excited about all the work that is to come.”
Raducanu after the defeat also said that she plans to take part in the Champions Tennis at the Royal Albert Hall at the end of this month before taking her first break in seven years.
Beltz has worked with Kerber for the majority of his career, initially starting coaching the three-time Grand Slam winner when she was a teenager.
The 44-year-old started his first stint as a coach with Kerber from 2004 to 2013, during which she rose in the ranking charts and was one of the leading women’s tennis stars. She came into limelight at the US Open 2011, where she reached the semi-finals of the tournament.
Beltz and Kerber parted ways at the end of 2013, but he was rehired as her coach at the start of 2015 when she was struggling with the form. As soon as she hired him back – she once again rose in the ranking charts and moved into the top 10.
Kerber ended 2016 as world number one and once again parted ways with the German in 2017, but he rejoined her team once more in July 2020.
From 2017-2020 – Bletz coached Donna Vekic. The 25-year-old enjoyed a steady rise up the world rankings at the start of this period and played some fine tennis under him. Vekic saw more progress in 2019 as she reached her first Grand Slam quarters at the US Open. She even moved into the top 20 in ranking charts.
Beltz certainly has WTA Tour experience and has that aura which could be a deciding factor in the development of Raducanu in the coming years.
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