Emma Raducanu’s former coach has revealed he decided not to continue in his role because of “red flags” he said he could not ignore.
The 2021 US Open champion has been without a full-time coach since splitting with German Torben Beltz in April.
Former world number 20 Dmitry Tursunov spent time working with Raducanu earlier this year on a trial period and is now coaching Olympic champion Belinda Bencic.
The Russian could not agree terms for a more permanent stay and has now claimed there were issues he couldn’t overcome with the Brit.
“I was walking away from Emma regardless of whether there was another (player) available or not. We didn’t agree on the terms and there were some red flags that just couldn’t be ignored,” he said.
“Our trial period was over at the US Open but I stuck around, trying to see if there was going to be a way to impress the team.
“She’s absolutely great, she’s a hard worker and she doesn’t think or act like she’s a superstar ... it was a very difficult decision for me to walk away from a player that I like and respect.”
Raducanu’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Raducanu, who pulled out of the Transylvania Open due to a wrist injury earlier this month, is scheduled to play in next month’s Billie Jean King Cup finals.
