The cheerleading entourage that gave Emma Raducanu her smile back
It was an unexpected way to prepare for her date with the other world No 1, Aryna Sabalenka, on Friday evening. Asked what had prompted her interest, Raducanu replied: 'Yeah, I'm learning by osmosis. He is so effortless when he hits the ball. I have been trying to watch a bit more live [tennis]. I watched [Joao] Fonseca the other day.'
Her demeanour suggested a surprisingly serene state of mind, even during this most stressful of fortnights, when the eyes of the nation are upon her.
Given that Sabalenka is the only top-five seed remaining, Raducanu would surely prefer to be almost anywhere else in the draw. But at least she can swing freely on Friday, in the knowledge that few are expecting her to win.
Another explanation for her sunny mood lies in the presence of her extended friendship group at this event. As she said on Wednesday night, shortly after dispatching 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova on Centre Court: 'It's so rad. I have all of them here in one place. They've been my rock through everything. They're the closest people to me outside of my family.'
So who are these pals? Raducanu singled out one of them, Ben Heynold, by mentioning that she had known him since she was six. He is a one-time British junior, two years older than her, who signed up for college tennis at the University of North Carolina before joining financial-services provider The Raine Group.
Their long friendship is believed to be platonic, but Raducanu inevitably attracted plenty of gossip-column inches when she celebrated her 2021 US Open title by sharing an evening in Times Square with Heynold.
She has previously said: 'My parents were very much against [boyfriends] as it interfered with training. When I was younger I wasn't even allowed to hang out with my girl friends'.
In the photograph that Raducanu posted on Instagram after Monday's victory over 17-year-old compatriot Mimi Xu, she is flanked by Ben's mother Laura – who has also known her since she was small – and another close friend in Carla Wilfert.
'I think it adds more significance because they never really get to come and watch me,' said Raducanu. 'We made it an annual thing. They can come to Wimbledon. It aligns with everyone's calendar. A lot of them live in America. They're friends from secondary school, childhood. One of them [Heynold] I've known since I was six years old. Then another one since I was 14.
'It's just so special. They're in the box there. When I look over to them, it just gives me an extra boost of motivation.'
Although Raducanu hasn't explained how she came to meet these friends in the first place, it seems likely that her connection to Wilfert was established via Heynold – as they both attended the same American international school near Egham in Surrey. After completing her baccalaureate exams in 2020, Wilfert moved to Los Angeles, where she now works in the marketing department of entertainment conglomerate Fox.
A close contemporary of 22-year-old Raducanu, Wilfert is here with her boyfriend Ryan Cohen, an employee of the medical manufacturer Boston Scientific, yet another graduate of that same school near Egham. As Raducanu explained: 'They're so busy with their work often. They studied in America, too. So to have them all here in this one week, it just makes me really happy.
'After my match, I just went outside to see them for five or 10 minutes and speak to them. And that's just an opportunity that is so rare, and you don't really get that at other tournaments, because they have lives. So I have a few friends in other cities, but to have my real core, best friends here, it means a lot.'
Professional tennis can be an alienating carousel of hotels and departure lounges. On Tuesday, defeated third seed Alexander Zverev described himself as feeling 'very lonely' in a moving press conference. Which is why Raducanu finds this supporting cast of real-life friends – as opposed to the colleagues-cum-rivals you find in the locker-room – to be such a boon.
Crucially, their relationships date back to before that watershed moment in September 2021. As Raducanu said in a recent interview: 'The last few years, it's been very difficult for me to trust new people, especially those who have not necessarily known me from the years before the US Open. I just find myself gravitating towards those people now who I've known, and I'd say my circle is smaller than ever.'
The same pattern applies to her professional recruitment. Take last year's coach Nick Cavaday, who ran her junior tennis programme in Orpington. Or Cavaday's recent replacement Petchey, who spent several weeks working with her in the summer of 2020. Or Jane O'Donoghue, the mentor who used to be a national coach for the Lawn Tennis Association.
'I was so sheltered,' Raducanu has said. 'Up to 18, I was just with my parents, they helped me with everything, like nothing could touch me. All of a sudden, after that, everyone came and I got burnt quite a lot of times, whether that's professionally or personally. Now I'm just like very Fort Knox with who I let in.'
It's easy to see how a woman of Raducanu's profile could become suspicious, paranoid even. Which is why the presence of her US-based squad of cheerleaders is so valuable. With their support, she feels as though she starts each game at 15-0.
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