As Emma Raducanu steps into the unknown on Parisian clay, having barely hit a ball in months and still hampered by a mystery illness that wiped out her early season, she does now, at least, have a once-trusted ally to bind her to that glorious past.
The last time Raducanu had Andrew Richardson in her corner at a Grand Slam, she stood on the Arthur Ashe court with the US Open trophy clutched to her chest. That was five years ago, though, and having burned through eight different coaches since, Richardson is back to see if this rekindled partnership can ignite new fires.
A few hundred spectators gathered by Court 10 in the late-afternoon sun at Roland-Garros on Thursday to watch Raducanu practice alongside fellow Brit Fran Jones. A ripple of applause greeted a forehand down the line from Raducanu, who later needed to pause to collect a few hair pins from her physio, while Jones offered up a shout of 'nice' when Raducanu sent a drop shot skidding to a halt beyond the net, the two of them apologising to the other if they ever hit one too long. Richardson stood by her side as she struck, offering words of encouragement and advice in between rallies.
'I was amazed that she got rid of the coach in the first place,' said John McEnroe. 'Why the hell would you get rid of your coach a couple of weeks or a month after you won the US Open? I never understood that. Athletes are very superstitious, you don't change the winning formula. You came from nowhere and you won this US Open the way she did, it would seem like it would be nonsensical to me to do what she did. Is it too little, too late? She's still young. I don't know physically where she's at, mentally – there's a lot of issues that I'm not familiar enough with – but I would think the hope would be to have her, even though there's a lot more pressure on her in Wimbledon, that she would have a much better chance of doing something big there.'
Richardson's return didn't start well, with a first-round defeat in Strasbourg in Raducanu's only competitive outing since losing 6-1, 6-1 to Amanda Anisimova at Indian Wells in March. Raducanu was meant to return in Rome earlier this month but withdrew just minutes after her pre-tournament press conference citing the same post-viral illness, the lingering effects of a virus picked up in the Middle East in February.
A first-round draw against clay-specialist Solano Sierra, who took a set off reigning French Open champion Coco Gauff in Madrid, posts a tricky opener for the now unseeded Raducanu, who's slipped to 37 in the world rankings. Katie Boulter, the British number two, takes on US wildcard Akasha Urhobo, while Francesca Jones faces Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia, who once served a 10-month doping ban.
With Jack Draper missing Roland-Garros through injury, Cameron Norrie is the only British seed in the main draw and goes up against Adolfo Daniel Vallejo while Jacob Fearnley has the menacing prospect of facing Jannik Sinner in the second round if he can get past Juan Manuel Cerundolo. They will both be joined by Toby Samuel, who booked his place in the main draw after coming from a set down to beat Peruvian Bueno in the final round of qualifying, while Felix Gill faces Frenchman Kyrian Jacquet on Friday has his chance to do the same.
Former Bournemouth academy footballer Samuel was ranked outside the top 1,300 just a year ago but has soared to 159th in the world after four Challenger Tour triumphs. 'It's a dream come true,' said Southampton fan Samuel, who has enjoyed a more successful week at securing a spot on a sport's grandest stage than his beloved Saints. The 23-year-old joked he may have to catch a word with 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic for some advice on what to expect. 'I've been a little bit shy,' he said. 'I'll go ask Novak.'
