PARIS – US Open champion Emma Raducanu moved into the top 20 of the world rankings for the first time.
The 18-year-old Briton, who is ranked 20th after reaching the quarter-finals of the Transylvania Open in October, became the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam when she triumphed in New York in September.
Australian Ashleigh Barty remained number one after a week of the Billie Jean Cup, formerly known as the Fed Cup, but the competition’s results do not count toward the rankings system.
Raducanu has been working with coaching candidates on a trial basis in recent weeks. Raducanu split with coach Andrew Richardson following her stunning Flushing Meadows triumph and is seeking a coach with Tour-level experience.
Raducanu, who is playing without a coach in this week’s Upper Austria Ladies Linz, says she will have a new coach in time for the Melbourne major.
“I’m really feeling positive about my coaching situation; it’s in a good place. I’ll have a coach in place at the Australian Open,” Raducanu told the media in Linz.
“I had some trials and they went well. I’m really excited to get some good work done in pre-season and we’re going to have a really good time for sure. I think my game’s going to be moving in the right direction so I’m pretty excited for that.”
The 2022 Australian Open starts on January 17th. Raducanu said she’s not yet finished the evaluation process of coaching candidates.
“I’m in a very good position. It’s just a bit confidential. It’s my decision. It’s not fully done.”
