Emma Raducanu will begin a trial period with coach Vladimir Platenik in her opening match at Indian Wells on Thursday, a source has told ESPN.
The 2021 US Open champion has been without a permanent coach since splitting with Nick Cavaday, who stood down for health reasons after the Australian Open in January.
Raducanu will start her campaign at the Indian Wells tournament under guidance of Slovakian coach Platenik, who was the coach of Lulu Sun when the New Zealander knocked Raducanu out of Wimbledon in the fourth round in 2024.
“I don’t want to rush into anything, but I’m looking, I’m finding options and setting trials up,” Raducanu told BBC Sport.
“I think once I have a structure in place, I will feel very set — whereas in the Middle East it was very difficult for me because I didn’t really have any direction or [advice on] which tournaments to play, and it was very difficult doing it all on my own.
“I’m that kind of person who needs a plan and needs preparation. That’s what I’m building and that’s making me feel more comfortable.”
The British No. 2 will face Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima in her opening Indian Wells match as she looks to regain winning form following a tough start to 2025.
Raducanu crashed out of the Australian Open in January after losing to world No. 2 Iga Swiatek in the third round and had failed to record a win in her next three matches.
The 22-year-old won her opening game of the Dubai Tennis Championships but was forced into another setback after she was brought to tears by a man in the crowd demonstrating “fixated behaviour.”
Under Platenik, Raducanu will be looking to go her furthest into a championship in 2025.
Platenik has previously worked with Dominika Cibulkova when she reached the semifinals of the French Open in 2009, and has also coached Daria Kasatkina and Veronika Kudermetova.
Loughborough Academy coach Tom Welsh will also join Raducanu for Indian Wells in a one-off arrangement.
