Who is Mark Petchey? Emma Raducanu vows to "keep things informal" with part-time coach who is also on TV

Emma Raducanu has insisted she will keep working with her part-time coach Mark Petchey - but on an “informal” basis.

The 22-year-old linked up with Andy Murray’s former coach ahead of last month’s Miami Open, where she reached the quarter-finals. He is the latest in a long line of coaches she has worked with on non-permanent terms - something for which she has been criticised.

“We’re keeping things informal for now and it’s been working,” Raducanu said in a joint interview with the Guardian and the BBC ahead of this week’s Madrid Open. “He’s someone I’ve known for a long time and I do feel like I can trust him. For now there is no real thing set in stone but we’re taking it week to week and he’s helping me as much as he can alongside his current commitments.”

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The 2021 US Open champion admitted she still struggles with the scrutiny that follows every decision she makes.

“It’s really difficult, because I think every decision I make is made on such a big scale that it’s up for judgment,” she added. “I just need to get to a place where I’m comfortable enough and secure enough in what I’m doing that it doesn’t matter what other people are saying.

“Over the last few years, that is, truthfully, something that I have been kind of toiling with, because I would care about what people think. I think just in general, in my life, like anytime someone’s upset with me or something, it affects me.”

During his playing days, Petchey reached a peak of world number 80. His best performance came at Wimbledon in 1997, where he reached the third round - only to be eliminated by Boris Becker.

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Prior to being Murray’s coach, the 54-year-old worked with the likes of Silvija Talaja and Tina Pisnik, guiding them to the global top 30 and top 20 respectively. His own coach back in the day was his father, Rod.

For a time, Raducanu had been searching for a full-time coach, as Petchey is unable to commit to this. Those plans seem to have been halted for the time being, although Petchey remains steadfast in his position.

This is beacuse of his duties as a tennis commentator and analyst, working for Amazon Prime, ITV, BBC and Tennis Australia, among others.

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