Emma Raducanu is concentrating on turning into among the best athletes in tennis after hiring health coach Yutaka Nakamura forward of the brand new season.
Identified for his work with Maria Sharapova and, extra just lately, Naomi Osaka, Nakamura will journey with Raducanu all through the 2025 marketing campaign.
Persistent accidents since her gorgeous victory on the US Open in 2021 have stored Raducanu away from the courtroom for prolonged durations and addressing a scarcity of bodily robustness is a much-needed step.
“I think he is going to help me just really explore how far I can go, athletically,” mentioned the 22-year-old, who had beforehand relied on Garden Tennis Affiliation workers for her health coaching.
“I believe it is a huge energy of mine that I’ve nowhere close to fulfilled. I believe I can change into among the best athletes on the market in tennis and I am simply trying ahead to seeing how a lot I can do.
“And I think he’s really going to help with that. And the way I’m working with him and Nick, it’s a lot more integrated.”
Raducanu has discovered stability in her teaching set-up over the past 12 months with childhood mentor Nick Cavaday, and each he and Nakamura will be a part of the British quantity two when she flies out to Australia subsequent Thursday.
Having educated on the Nationwide Tennis Centre in London since serving to Britain attain the semi-finals of the Billie Jean King Cup final month, Raducanu will now head to Brisbane for some warm-weather work.
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She’s going to spend Christmas in New Zealand earlier than enjoying her first event of the brand new season in Auckland beginning on December 30.
Having missed two months on the again finish of the 2024 season with a foot damage, Raducanu is keen to play as a lot as attainable within the early weeks and can be hoping to compete in Adelaide forward of the Australian Open, which begins on January 12.
Emma Raducanu is trying to impress in 2025
“I feel like I’m in a pretty good place to just get on court as much as I can,” mentioned Raducanu, who’s at present ranked 59th on the planet. “I feel really strong. I feel really fit.
“The one factor I can not actually communicate for is I have never performed that many matches. On the coaching courtroom I really feel superb. I really feel like I am operating round, throwing myself round on the courtroom, however it’s totally different enjoying matches.
“I played a few (at Billie Jean King Cup) and I felt good. I felt like I recovered well. I wasn’t tiring in the matches. It would just be good to see as the level increases, and if I have to play more back-to-back, how I’m going to react.”
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Raducanu feeling ‘uneasy’ by tennis scandals
The tennis world was rocked final week when it was introduced Iga Swiatek had been given a one-month doping ban following a optimistic take a look at in August.
The five-time Grand Slam champion’s clarification {that a} complement she took had been contaminated with a prohibited substance was accepted, and Raducanu admitted it has left her feeling uneasy.
“I think in general, not just me but a lot of the players I know, we’re quite apprehensive,” she mentioned. “All the things we take, we’re very conscious of the state of affairs and the way simply issues will be contaminated.
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“There are certain supplements that I may want to take but I can’t take them because they’re over-the-counter and they’re not batch tested (pre-tested for prohibited substances).
“To batch take a look at one thing is £1,000 for one little factor, so it’s extremely costly. For the issues that you just actually, actually need to take, then it is clearly price that, however you simply have to chop out a number of issues that you just would not essentially take.
“I’m very careful with what I drink, what I eat. If I leave my water around, I’m very on edge about it. But it’s just part of the sport. We’re all in the same boat.”
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