ONE look at Emma Raducanu was enough to convince Flintshire tennis coach Matt James that he had a special talent on his hands.
Raducanu has made tennis history by reaching the final of the US Open.
The 18-year-old from Kent beat Maria Sakkari in straight sets in the early hours of this morning to become the first qualifier to reach the final of a Grand Slam tournament.
Greek 17th seed Sakkari is a fierce competitor and an experienced campaigner, but Raducanu raced away with the first set and nervelessly finished her off in the second to reach the final.
It was a chance meeting with Nigel Sears, then working with the 15-year-old on a consultancy basis, at Wimbledon three years ago, that led to Matt James being offered the chance to coach her day to day.
“You could tell straight away that she’s pretty special,” the former Ysgol Maes Garmon pupil said.
“The mindset and the maturity on the match court you don’t see very often, I hadn’t seen at all really. So that was quite exciting.
“You knew she could handle the big occasions and it’s just a case of making those big improvements on the court to back it up.
“Obviously she’s a really bright girl and you can tell she’s so determined to excel in everything she does. It’s no surprise that she’s really good academically.
“When we were at Bromley (Tennis Centre), we were playing tennis in between her school sessions, whereas a lot of players her level would have stopped the education after GCSEs. But she’s really gritty and determined to do both very well, so credit to her.”
Great Britain's Emma Raducanu celebrates defeating Greece's Maria Sakkari to reach the Women's Final during day eleven of the US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows- Corona Park, New York. Picture date: Friday
Matt worked with Raducanu full-time for just over two years, honing her game for senior tennis and helping her take her first steps on the professional tour before taking up a role as the Lawn Tennis Association’s National Tennis Centre Coach last October.
The teenager had success straight away in the lower tiers but she decided not to travel during the pandemic, focusing on her A levels and playing only domestically.
She did not play a professional match between February 2020 and June 2021, so the fact she is now in the final of a Grand Slam tournament is an astounding achievement.
During Wimbledon, Matt said: “The level that she played, I’ve seen that before, I’ve seen it on practice courts, so the tennis isn’t hugely a big surprise but some of the shots under sheer pressure really did surprise me.
“We know that she likes the big stage but she was still going into the unknown.
“This is the first time she’s fully committed to a tennis career so it’s great she’s had success so quickly. But it was just a case of when. It was going to be inevitable with her that she was going to burst onto the scene.
“It’s probably a little bit sooner than I thought because she hasn’t played many matches in the last year but she’s really taken her opportunity.
“She’s three matches in and physically she looks strong. She’ll be worrying all the opponents now.”
Matt hails from Sychdyn and, during his playing career, trained at the Wrexham Tennis Academy.
That she has an experienced guiding hand will no doubt help given she has gone from virtual anonymity to the front pages of national newspapers in a short time.
Great Britain's Emma Raducanu in action against Greece's Maria Sakkari during the women's semi final on day eleven of the US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Flushing Meadows- Corona Park, New York. Picture date: Friday
Matt, though, is not concerned about the huge interest in her, saying: “She’s a smart girl. She’ll take what she wants from it and she’ll be able to block out the rest.
“She knows that there’ll be hype but she’s also been training for the big stage. Even years ago, we were talking about the best players in the world and saying, ‘This is how you’re going to be competing with them’.
“It was almost a motivation back then. It shouldn’t be a shock to her that she is now playing those people.
“I remember on the practice court if she was struggling a few years ago it was like, ‘Look, you can throw the towel in here but this person, this person, this person is out there training right now and this is what they’re going to be doing, and we’ve got to get the hard work in’.
“And that usually spurred her on. I remember a few sessions where that really motivated her, wanting to be up there because she knew she’d have to work harder than the rest if she was studying.”
Ahead of this morning's semi-final, Matt tweeted: "I was hoping she’d inspire a lot of girls one day but she’s inspiring a nation right now!! So pleased for her and the frightening thing is that there’s still at least another gear and she won’t stop improving in the coming months/years."
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