"She's a great person, she's smart, she works hard; For now I'm not complaining" - Emma Raducanu's coach Dmitry Tursunov on their working equation
Emma Raducanu's coaching situation has been widely discussed ever since her 2021 US Open triumph. While she is yet to find a long-term coach, she seems to be getting along quite well with her current coach Dmitry Tursunov, who lavished praise on the teenager.
Raducanu and Tursunov began working on a part-time basis shortly before the 2022 US Open, with the association set to end after the US Open. However, Tursunov was spotted on the practice courts with Raducanu even after her US Open exit, and the duo are continuing their association, at least for now.
Tursunov opened up about his working relationship with Raducanu during a recent interview with the Tennis Legend Podcast. The former top-20 player praised Raducanu and said that while every coach has to adjust to certain specific characteristics of each player, working with Raducanu has been easy for him so far.
"I really like her. She's a great person, she's smart, she works hard," Tursunov said when asked about his equation with Emma Raducanu. "We all have our own things, every player has their own quirks and character traits. Sometimes players can be stubborn or hard to coach, you're not gonna get a perfect player. I think she's a really good person, I really like her, so it makes it a little bit easier for me."
"You want to put in some extra work" 👊
@Clijsterskim and Mats Wilander discuss Emma Raducanu still sticking around New York with her new coach Dmitry Tursunov.
#USOpen | @Babsschett https://t.co/InP1jAxJlG
He is aware that things could change in the future, but he is happy with the way they are now.
"Whether things change or not, who knows, but for now I'm not complaining about anything," he added.
Tursunov is the fourth different coach Emma Raducanu has worked with since her US Open triumph last year.
The former Russian player often takes to the practice court without tying his shoe laces. While he clarified that the quality of his new shoes allows him to play without lacing his shoes, he joked about Raducanu, saying that she has yet to reach a level where she forces him to tie his shoe laces.
"For now, she hasn't reached the level to make me lace my shoes," Tursunov said with a chuckle. "You know, in old movies of martial arts, the teacher is fighting the student and loses to the student and then says 'you're ready.' So like she's not ready yet," he joked.
Emma Raducanu practising, with Dmitry Tursunov directing from the shadows https://t.co/Lhfmf7e0IX
"Nowadays players are the bosses" - Emma Raducanu's new coach Dmitry Tursunov
Emma Raducanu's agent first contacted Dmitry Tursunov to explore the possibility of him joining the 19-year-old's coaching team. Tursunov opened up about the same and said that he prefers players contacting coaches as the players are in need of a coach to guide them on tour and not the other way around.
He also opined that players are 'bosses' these days and that the dynamic does not quite sit well with him. Tursunov feels that young players are often unable to structure working relationships with coaches, often leading to strained player-coach equations.
"I think it's better if the player approaches, not the coach because ultimately it's the player that needs help. If the coach approaches the players, it's harder to figure out if it's the coach that needs the job or the player that needs the coach," Tursunov expressed.
"Nowadays it has changed quite a bit, players are the bosses so it changes the dynamic. It's not a good thing because a 19-year-old sometimes doesn't even know how to book a flight ticket, so how can they decide how to structure a working relationship with someone?" he added.
The two newest women’s first time grand slam champions, Emma Raducanu and Elena Rybakina, are hitting together in Cincinnati.
Dmitry Tursunov is here again with Raducanu. https://t.co/aarPfteLcW
Tursunov has previously coached top WTA players such as Elena Vesnina, Aryna Sabalenka, and most recently former World No. 2 Anett Kontaveit.