Tennis sensation Emma Raducanu has confirmed her split from coach Torben Beltz only five months after they began working together.
Raducanu, 19, made her clay court debut earlier this month and is preparing to start at the Madrid Open this week. However, she'll do so working alongside the LTA's head of women's coaching, Iain Bates, as her training mentor for the time being.
“I want to thank Torben for his coaching, professionalism and dedication over the last half a year,” said Raducanu upon confirming the split. "He has a huge heart and I have enjoyed our strong chemistry during the time together. I feel the best direction for my development is to transition to a new training model with the LTA supporting in the interim.”
The next appointment will be Raducanu's fourth coach in a little less than a year, having previously worked under Nigel Sears and then Andrew Richardson. It was alongside Richardson that the teenager romped to a stunning U.S. Open title in New York last year, but their partnership was ended less than a fortnight following that victory.
Beltz, 45, mentored Angelique Kerber when she won both the Australian Open and U.S. Open crowns in 2016. That same year, Kerber was also a runner-up at both Wimbledon and the WTA Finals, as well as claiming a tennis silver medal at the Rio 2016 Olympics.
The opportunity to coach a rising talent such as Raducanu is sure to attract a wealth of attention, though many top names are already contracted with rival stars. The British No. 1 is currently preparing for her debut appearance at the French Open, with Roland Garros being the only major she's yet to play.
Raducanu has won three of her first five competitive outings on clay after debuting on the surface in Great Britain's Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers earlier this month. She impressed in her maiden outing at the Porsche Grand Prix in Stuttgart, where she suffered a quarter-final defeat to world No. 1 Iga Swiatek.
The change in coaching situation is awkwardly timed considering the French Open is due to start on May 22. Depending on how she fares in Paris, Raducanu will then have around a month to prepare for Wimbledon, where she hopes to improve upon last year's fourth-round finish.
The draw for the Madrid Open is set to be announced, with former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka in the running as a wild card. Raducanu enters the competition ranked 11th in the world, her highest placement to date since turning professional in 2018.
