Emma Raducanu is ready to make her comeback—and fans couldn’t be more excited! After a season that looked more like a rollercoaster than a tennis tour, with injury setbacks and missed opportunities, the British sensation is now in Spain, ready to represent her country at the Billie Jean King Cup. But, as usual, Raducanu is keeping us all on our toes. Rumor has it there’s a fresh face joining her team, sparking plenty of speculation about who it could be and how they’ll shape her return. Yet, in classic Raducanu style, she’s keeping mum, letting her fans do the guessing.

The British tennis sensation engaged in an interview with the press ahead of Britain’s match against Germany at the BJK Cup. She deliberated on a wide range of factors including her plans for the tournament and the next season ahead. But when quizzed about her rumored partnership with fitness coach Yutaka Nakamura, Raducanu gave a skeptical response. 

Responding to the question, the star player said, “We are having discussions. Yeah, we’ll see. I’m looking forward for 2025 regardless.” When further pressed to elaborate and asked if there was any confirmation, she gave a four-word response saying, “We’re in discussions.” For the unversed, the rumors started to gain weight after Telegraph Sport reported that a full-time deal between Raducanu and Nakamura is being discussed. 

Remember, Nakamura holds a very strong CV having worked with top players on the tour. He was the fitness coach of Maria Sharapova for eight years, before working with Naomi Osaka for an equally lengthy period. He also had stints with other star players like Jennifer Capriati, Mary Pierce, Tommy Haas, Kei Nishikori, and Denis Shapovalov. But interestingly Raducanu has previously highlighted her desire to work in small teams and hence, the latest speculation also raises questions about her choices. 

When asked about the same, Raducanu said, “I don’t think bringing someone else in necessarily makes it large. I think my goal next year is to stay on court longer. This year, I mean, I came to top 60 in the world, but I barely played I think less than 15 events. So yeah, I know if I’m on court and healthy and competing, I can go even higher and further. I think that my athleticism is a strength of mine, but it’s nowhere near its full potential.” Remember, this comes at a time when the Brit faced some serious concerns throughout the season due to her poor health. 

Raducanu took a long hiatus from the courts last year after surgeries on both wrists and one ankle. However, her current season has been no better. Raducanu has played just 14 tournaments this season, with her last coming at the Korea Open from where she withdrew after suffering a foot injury during her quarterfinal clash against Daria Kasatkina. Besides, she was ousted in the second and fourth rounds of the Australian Open and Wimbledon respectively. Her performance at the US Open was even more tragic where she was ousted in the first round itself. But despite these challenges and uncertainties over new addition to her team, Emma Raducanu is determined to play sensationally at the BJK Finals in Spain. 

“Feeling quite confident,” – Emma Raducanu makes true admission about BJK Cup preparations

Emma Raducanu might have witnessed struggles but she is known for her resilience. She started the season as the No. 285 ranked player but quickly made progress and is currently ranked No. 58. These achievements have boosted her confidence and despite facing struggles and a long hiatus after the Kora Open, she is determined to play remarkably at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals. 

Speaking to the press, she said, “I put a few really good weeks of training in, so I think I’m feeling quite confident in how I’m playing. For me, it will be just about adjusting to playing matches again. It’s been a few months, so I’m intrigued to see how that goes.” But she is also willing to focus more on the next season. “I’m looking forward to next year, hopefully having a better set-up in place to provide that. Also, I think I hopefully can play some more tournaments too,” Raducanu added.

For now, it would be interesting to see if Emma Raducanu would confirm his partnership with Yutaka Nakamura anytime soon. But will this partnership help the star player overcome her challenges? Well, only time will tell.