EMMA RADUCANU has opened up on her relationship with Carlos Alcaraz.
Last week it was announced that the superstar pair will be teaming up for the revamped US Open mixed doubles event in August.
Raducanu, 22, set tongues wagging as she headed to Queen’s on Saturday to cheer on her new doubles partner at the swanky West London club.
And SunSport has since revealed that the “spark” between Alcaraz and Raducanu was the “talk of Queen’s” last week.
The British No1 missed the Spaniard’s victory over Jiri Lehecka on Sunday as she had headed to Eastbourne to play in her final event before Wimbledon.
Speaking before her round one match against Ann Li, Raducanu lifted the lid on her partnership with Alcaraz.
After the world No2 joked that Raducanu “took a while” to give him a response, she said: “I mean, of course, I had to ask my team if they wanted me to play.
“But for me, when he asked me, I was going to say yes, I just had to kind of go through the formality of asking my coach, so I didn’t just make the decision.”
When it was put to Raducanu that fans have frequently joked that she and Alcaraz are “destined for each other”, the British star laughed and replied: “I’m glad the internet is having fun and we’re providing entertainment for everyone.”
On how they became friends, Raducanu added: “I’ve known him for years and actually in Wimbledon 2021 it was like kind of the first time I started getting to know him, and I had a good run there and then also again in the US Open in 2021.
“And I remember he was always playing the day before me and I was playing like the second day of the round.
“And I would see him win and then I would have motivation to win and get myself into that position too.
“And I remember he beat Stef [Tsitsipas] in the third round and it was like a big win, his breakout kind of win on a big stage and it was really cool to kind of, I guess, go through that tournament together and then I kept going through the US Open, but we were staying in touch for the whole time and yeah, it’s nice.”
Throughout her career, Raducanu has shown a tendency to rely on people that she knew prior to her US Open success.
This has been particularly notable in her coaching choices, with the world No38 often returning to former trainers and confidantes Mark Petchey, Nick Cavaday and Jane O’Donoghue.
Further lifting the lid on her connection with Alcaraz, Raducanu went on: “We have a good relationship still. He’s obviously overtaken me a lot, but it’s nice that we have that from a while ago.
“I think for all of us, we really kind of value those connections that we had from when we were young because when you become a bit more known or a bit more successful, you just find yourself reverting back to people you knew from a young age because you’re like, that’s a real genuine connection.
“Because it becomes very busy and you have a lot more friends but the ones that you’ve known for a long time mean a lot more to you.”
Raducanu will take on American Li in round one at Devonshire Park this afternoon.
Should she triumph, the home favourite will face Australia’s Maya Joint in round two – with a potential rematch with her Wimbledon conqueror from last year Lulu Sun awaiting in the quarter-finals.
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