The former world No. 7 from Le Puy-en-Velay, Haute-Loire, France, recently shared her thoughts on Emma Raducanu, highlighting the importance of improving with coaching stability and citing the example of world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.
Raducanu, the world No. 28, who skipped the WTA 1000 Miami Open due to health reasons, has undergone frequent coaching changes, leading to instability in her form and performance.
Marion Bartoli Urges Emma Raducanu to Find Coaching Stability Like Aryna Sabalenka
Raducanu is currently moving ahead with Mark Petchey, with whom she worked briefly last season. She is working with Petchey after her coaching relationship with Francisco Roig ended, who was the alternate coach to Spanish legend Rafael Nadal from 2005 to 2022. Raducanu worked with Roig from August last year to January and separated from him following her second-round exit at the Australian Open.
In an earlier interview with Sky Sports, Raducanu revealed that Roig initiated their split, saying, “He ended up saying, ‘Look, I don’t think this is going in the way we both want it to,’ so he ended it, really. In a way, I think we had a few moments where we weren’t agreeing on a few things. Other than that, we still maintain a great relationship.”
The 2021 US Open champion has trained with Nigel Sears, Andrew Richardson, Torben Beltz, Dmitry Tursunov, Sebastian Sachs, Nick Cavaday, Petchey, and Roig. She is back with Petchey, who works for the Tennis Channel as an analyst and commentator, as she aims to balance her game amid coaching prospects.
The turbulence in Raducanu’s career, considering the coaching, has attracted attention from Marion Bartoli, who won eight singles titles, including the 2013 Wimbledon Championship, and three doubles titles on the WTA Tour.
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Bartoli shared her thoughts on the significance of coaching stability, taking the example of Sabalenka and adding, “For Emma to keep changing coaches is a difficult topic because you need to have some sort of stability. When you look at the coaching system, Sabalenka has had the same coach for such a long period of time, and I think for Emma, it’s about trying to find the right fit!
“I do strongly believe she will need to find someone she can trust for a long period of time if she wants to improve.”
Marion Bartoli has urged Emma Raducanu to take a leaf out of Aryna Sabalenka’s coaching manual by sticking with one coach for a long period of time 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/iVXTS0DNQl
— Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) March 31, 2026
Raducanu’s top performance this season came at the 2026 Transylvania Open, where she reached the final, losing to Sorana Cîrstea. She also participated in the Hobart International, the Australian Open, the Qatar Open, the Dubai Tennis Championships, and the Indian Wells Masters.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka is reaching new heights after completing the Sunshine Double, winning both the Indian Wells and Miami Open titles, among other feats this season.
