After yet another incredible performance in the US Open last eight on Wednesday Emma Raducanu praised her “amazing team” with her in New York.
Now the British teen has reached the US Open final – becoming the first British woman to earn a place in a major final since Virginia Wade won Wimbledon in 1977
Here, our tennis correspondent Simon Briggs takes a look at the people behind Raducanu’s remarkable rise.
Andrew Richardson, coach
Nicknamed “Flex”, the 47-year-old Richardson was a promising young player who featured in one British Davis Cup tie in 1997. A 6ft 7in giant with a vicious lefty serve, he also reached the third round of Wimbledon that same year, but perhaps lacked the competitive zeal of his contemporary Tim Henman. The two remain very close, however, and Richardson was the best man at Henman’s wedding.
Since his playing days, Richardson has been beavering away as a coach, mainly at Culford School in Suffolk. He also spent a couple of years working with Raducanu at Bromley Tennis Centre from when she was 11, and then rejoined her camp this summer when she parted company with the experienced Nigel Sears. Part of the thinking was that, as a relaxed presence and a familiar face, he would make her feel as comfortable as possible on her first long trip abroad.
The plan seems to have worked, judging by Raducanu’s comment that “He [Richardson] is a very calming character. So sometimes, if I’m getting intense or too fired up or expect too much from myself, he’s very, very good at just relaxing me and reassuring me.”
Will Herbert, physio
A 43-year-old physio, Herbert was a decent junior who spent a year attending Futures events alongside Arvind Parmar and Martin Lee – who both went on to be Davis Cup players – but didn’t quite deliver the same results and decided not to take a punt on a professional tennis career. He opted for a tennis scholarship at Loughborough University instead, before coaching at Dukes Meadows in west London, and has since worked as a physio, helping elite players like Kyle Edmund and Alexander Zverev.
According to Jez Green, formerly Zverev’s fitness trainer, “Will is funny and good to be around, so he’ll be an asset for Emma and her team.” Herbert himself says that, since he moved from the court to the physio’s bench, his friends have changed his unofficial title from “Tennis Will” to “Mechanic Will”.
Herbert hasn’t been involved with the whole of Raducanu’s six-week American odyssey. Employed by the Lawn Tennis Association for the past six months, he came out to New York in time for the start of the US Open’s qualifying event to help out with the whole British contingent. But as the other players have dropped away, he has ended up working mainly with her.
Chris Helliar, agent
Another junior prospect, 29-year-old Helliar spent his teenage years playing at the Bath University academy – now known as Team Bath Tennis – before taking a tennis scholarship to America. He stayed on to do an MBA degree, and was hired by the super-agency IMG – who are also responsible for Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams among many others – in March this year. Previously he had been part of Creative Artists Agency for four years.
The head of IMG’s player division is Max Eisenbud, best known for his work with Maria Sharapova. Eisenbud can be seen at Raducanu’s matches, often fist-pumping when she strikes a particularly spectacular shot. He is heavily involved in marketing and sponsorship deals, while Helliar is her day-to-day point of contact. They are officially listed as “co-agents”.
“I’ve just got such a great support team around me and a smaller tight-knit group of people that I really trust,” said Raducanu after her quarter-final victory over Belinda Bencic on Wednesday. “We are all just really enjoying the moment.”