Emma Raducanu’s path to recovery: Petchey connects injuries to stressful comeback

Former Andy Murray’s coach, Mark Petchey, discussed Emma Raducanu’s injury history and suggested that her injuries may be linked to emotional stress. Since winning the 2021 US Open title, the Brit has faced constant injuries that have hindered her appearances on the WTA Tour.

The 21-year-old player has struggled to recapture the level that earned her a Grand Slam title due to recurring injuries. In 2023, Raducanu underwent surgery on both wrists to address these issues and prepare for the future in better physical condition, though this forced her to miss most of the season.

Raducanu’s injury struggles tied to emotional stress

In her 2024 comeback, she started outside the top 300 in the rankings. Despite a limited tournament schedule, she managed to finish the season as world No. 57. She played only 13 tournaments throughout the year, missed Roland Garros, and participated in just three of the 10 WTA 1000 events. Gradually, the former world No. 10 has shown signs of regaining confidence, though she has yet to win new titles or reach another final.

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In a recent interview with Betway, former Andy Murray’s coach Mark Petchey highlighted the emotional stress Raducanu faces, suggesting it could have contributed to her frequent injuries early in her career.

“The lack of matches at the top level and the stress and the emotional stress will have a potential impact on her picking up injuries, and I think that that's where the lessons are learned,” he explained.“The more times you're outside the arena and not playing in stressful situations, there is going to be a tendency to get more injured when you go back into those because you're going to push yourself harder.”

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At the same time, Petchey predicted that Raducanu could have opportunities at Grand Slam tournaments in the future, with her first chance coming at the upcoming Australian Open.

“You can do all of those things in practice, but it's never quite the same as when you do matches and you're trying to compete for Grand Slam titles, which Emma will be doing in the not-too-distant future,” Petchey added. “There has to be a correlation between not playing enough matches and some of the injuries that she's unfortunately picked up.”