There are many reasons to be positive about the Anglo-Spanish alliance between Emma Raducanu and new coach Francis Roig.
There is her sparkling form, his history with Rafael Nadal and the opinion of Feliciano Lopez, told to Daily Mail Sport, that he is the best technical coach in the world. There are Spanish lessons, golfing days, steak dinners and football warm-ups.
But let’s start with a single word, spoken by Raducanu every time we have discussed Roig in New York: trust.
That is not something that comes easily to the 22-year-old; not since she was ‘burned’ both personally and professionally since her title here four years ago.
In choosing coaches, Raducanu has cleaved to those who knew her before that Fairytale of New York, from Nick Cavaday to Jane O’Donoghue to Mark Petchey. But this was not sustainable; eventually she had to reach out outside her circle and let someone in.
And now she has. Her answer to a question about the 18 years Roig spent as part of Nadal’s team is revealing.
Emma Raducanu is delighted with how her partnership with Francis Roig has begun
Trust is not something that comes easily for Raducadu, who has been burned before
‘He keeps his work with Rafa very private, which I respect,’ says Raducanu. ‘I like that he doesn’t divulge or share too much information because then I trust that he wouldn’t do the same with me. I really like it.’
Basically, she knows Roig is not about to do a Vlado Platenik – the Slovenian coach who, days after beginning a trial with Raducanu, sang like a canary to an Eastern European website. He was gone within a fortnight.
‘Francis is not that kind of person,’ says Lopez, who was coached by Roig for six years at the very start of his career and is here as an analyst for ESPN. ‘They are going to be working in a circle of trust.’
There’s that word again.
Raducanu is delighted with how her partnership with Roig has begun and, as one of the Spaniard’s oldest friends tells Daily Mail Sport, the feeling is mutual.
Jordi Vilaro has known Roig for over 40 years and they co-founded the BTT academy in Spain.
‘I talked to Francis after the matches, and he’s happy,’ says Vilaro. ‘He is excited about the mentality of Emma: she’s a hard worker, talented and she loves to be on the practice court – that’s a good combination.
‘It is still early, because Francis has many different concepts. They need time but it looks like Emma is very smart and is catching everything very soon, very fast.’
It is noticeable how much time Raducanu has spent on the practice courts with Roig
Feliciano Lopez has saluted Roig’s work, insisting he is the best technical coach in the world
Lopez tells me Roig is ‘the best coach I have ever had’ and Vilaro explains the 57-year-old’s unique philosophy.
‘The traditional way of thinking about tennis is that you have to be in the right place before you hit the ball,’ says Vilaro. ‘Francis believes you have to arrive on time – not before time.
‘It is all about fluidness, playing dynamically and using your whole body.
‘It is not about science – he has never opened a book of biomechanics in his life – it is all about his eyes. He can see and perceive things other coaches cannot.’
It is noticeable how much time Raducanu has spent on the practice courts this week. She went straight back out after her first-round victory over Ena Shibahara and, on her two days off after that win, decided not to visit the Frick Collection, as planned, preferring more time on court.
They have been working on her slice backhand, and Roig has set Raducanu the challenge of beating him in a cross-court exchange.
‘On the court, I’m always happy, always laughing around him,’ says Raducanu. ‘He brings so much. He’s constantly joking around. It’s great to have that around, that positivity, and I feed off it. I love having light energy in my team.’
As Petchey did during his successful stop-gap stint over the summer, Roig has brought an element of fun into the pre-match warm-up, making sure it is not just about tennis.
Raducanu likes to form close bonds with her inner circle, and Roig holds the same philosophy
With Petchey in Miami it was spikeball; what about in New York? ‘Football,’ says Raducanu. ‘Today (her second-round victory over Janice Tjen) I went on to court and I felt so good because I was like… I had underspin on my kick and I was flinging my foot – the general consensus was I was kicking the ball well. So it was a good omen before I went on.’
Roig is a fine footballer. Vilaro tells me a story from their annual academy match when Roig smacked the ball at him so hard he broke his wrist – let’s hope he is a little more restrained with Raducanu.
The night after the Tjen win, Raducanu, Roig, the rest of the team and some friends went out for dinner at Benjamin’s, one of New York’s top steakhouses.
Raducanu likes to form close bonds with her inner circle, and Vilaro says Roig ascribes to the Spanish philosophy that a player-coach relationship should be more like family than business.
‘I don’t know Emma but probably before, her coaches are only coaches,’ says Vilaro. ‘With the Spanish mentality, we try to build up a good relationship with the players, like a family.
‘We feel the matches as if it’s our daughter, our son playing. It’s special.’
Roig comes across as a born teacher and Raducanu – whether as a schoolgirl or tennis player – is a born student. She is learning Spanish – and also trying her hand at golf.
‘In the car rides, Francis will sometimes be teaching me Spanish,’ says Raducanu. ‘A few words, a few sentences. Hopefully I can add to that and you might see some on-court coaching in Spanish.’
Roig comes across as a born teacher and Raducanu is a born student
Raducanu is hopeful Roig can be the man to help her snap her streak against the world’s best
As for golf, she is following her mixed doubles partner Carlos Alcaraz into the game.
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‘I’m going to the course to try it out,’ she says. ‘I don’t play but Francis and some friends play golf, so I’ll go and swing and see how I am.’
Go and swing sums up the attitude Raducanu can take into her third-round match against No 9 seed Elena Rybakina on Friday. The British No 1 is yet to leave a scratch on those at the apex of the game, losing all 11 meetings with her generation’s big four of Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, Coco Gauff and Rybakina.
Is Roig the man to help her snap this streak?
‘I think so,’ says Raducanu. ‘To really take a step to be beating or making it close with the top-10 consistently, he can really help get me towards that. We’ve only had a few weeks together so I don’t know if it will come this week, but I do believe over time we will get there.’