Emma Raducanu sacked Andy Murray's father-in-law who worked with ex-Man Utd star's wife

Emma Raducanu has become known for regularly switching coaches since soaring into the spotlight in 2021. The 22-year-old parted ways with Andy Murray's father-in-law Nigel Sears shortly before her surprise victory at the US Open almost four years ago.

Raducanu is aiming for more Grand Slam success at Wimbledon this summer. Her stunning US Open victory as a teenager came while working with Andrew Richardson, but their partnership dissolved just weeks after the New York tournament. Prior to her triumph at Flushing Meadows, Raducanu had begun working with Murray's father-in-law, Sears, in April 2021, which saw Raducanu impressively reach the fourth round on her Wimbledon debut.

However, that collaboration was short-lived. Raducanu later explained her thought process behind leaving Sears, who had coached several top stars, including Ana Ivanovic, wife of former Bayern Munich and Manchester United midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger.

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"After Wimbledon, I was ranked around 200 in the world. And, at the time I thought Andrew would be a great coach to try and I went to the States," Raducanu told reporters in September 2021.

"Never did I even dream of winning the US Open and having the run I did, and now I'm ranked 22 in the world which is pretty crazy to me. It's tough to have that conversation with anyone, but I need someone who's had that professional tour experience, and has been through it, and seen players in my situation for many years, going through the same because it's going to take a lot.

"I feel like at this stage in my career, and playing the top players in the world, I realised I really need someone right now that has had that WTA Tour experience at the high levels, which means that I'm looking for someone who has been at that level and knows what it takes."

It was claimed that Raducanu's move from coach Sears to Richardson may have been influenced by her father's preference for a recognisable companion on her first international events as a pro. However, Raducanu had surged up the rankings unexpectedly after clinching the US Open title, prompting her to seek a mentor with hefty professional expertise.

"The players at the top are serious competition and serious players. I just really need someone right now who has been through that and can really guide me along the way because I'm still very very new to everything," she added.

Sears may have fit the bill, given his past experience working with Daniela Hantuchova, Anett Kontaveit, Ivanoivic and other female stars throughout his career. However, Raducanu ultimately picked Torben Beltz to replace Richardson, a partnership that lasted five months until April 2022.

Afterwards, the young tennis star had stints with Dmitry Tursunov and Sebastian Sachs before allying once more with former LTA Loughborough Academy coach Cavaday just before the 2024 Australian Open. Raducanu's agent, Max Eisenbud, defended the frequent coaching changes in 2023. "That has been their (Raducanu and her dad's) philosophy all the way up through the juniors," he told The Tennis Podcast. "They never had coaches for a long time. You've probably heard of that.

"For them, that is calm waters, having a coach for five months and going on to someone else. I think people have a hard time understanding how you can get to the fourth round of Wimbledon and then how you don't keep working with Nigel Sears, who is a great coach and a great guy."

"All the people when she stopped working with Nigel were killing her... then she won the US Open. You were killing her for not staying with Nigel then she won the US Open. Then she changes coaches again. People need to get over the fact that that's what they need to do. It's probably going to be like that for the rest of her career."

Raducanu had stopped working with Cavaday in January due to his health issues, but he has since returned to her coaching setup alongside Mark Petchey. Raducanu expressed her happiness at seeing Cavaday again and her confidence in her current coaching team. "I'm happy to see him healthy, first of all," she said last month.

"I think having Mark and Nick, both people who have banks of experience and I think they can complement each other really well and I trust both of them a lot," she explained. "So that is a big fundamental for me. So, yeah, I'm looking forward to this upcoming season and see how it goes."

Following her straight-sets triumph over fellow Brit Mimi Xu, Raducanu has progressed to the second round at Wimbledon. The ex-US Open champion is due to take on Marketa Vondrousova of Czechia in the next round.