The good news for Emma Raducanu despite her early exit from the Australian Open and coaching split

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The first month of Emma Raducanu’s 2026 season didn’t go to plan.

Arriving in Australia, still struggling with injuries, Raducanu lost to Anastasia Potapova in the second round.

Reacting to the defeat, Raducanu split from her coach, Francisco Roig.

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The return of the Raducanu coaching merry-go-round left many rolling their eyes, as fans of the Brit wonder if she will ever stick with someone for more than six months or a year.

But it’s not all bad news for the 2021 US Open champion, as she’s already won her first match of the post-Roig era.

Emma Raducanu is set to be ranked higher than she was before the Australian Open

Returning to WTA Tour action in Romania, Raducanu entered the 2026 Transylvania Open as the top seed.

She played Belgium’s Greet Minnen in the first round.

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Making light work of the world number 125, Raducanu defeated Minnen, 6-0, 6-4, to book her spot in round two.

The win saw Raducanu jump two places in the ‘Live WTA Rankings’, up to 28th.

Live WTA Rankings

That’s higher than her pre-Australian Open ranking (29th).

She could climb even further depending on how far she goes in Romania.

Emma Raducanu’s ranking permutations (Subject to change)

• Transylvania Open – Loses in 2R (28th)
• Transylvania Open – Loses in QF (27th)
• Transylvania Open – Loses in SF (27th)
• Transylvania Open – Loses in F (25th)
• Transylvania Open – Champion (25th)

If she were to reach the second final of her career, Raducanu could finish the week ranked as high as 25th in the world.

She won’t want to get too far ahead of herself, though, as there’s a long way to go…

Who’s next for Emma Raducanu in Romania?

Raducanu will play Slovenia’s Kaja Juvan in the second round of the Transylvania Open.

They have never met before on the WTA Tour, but fans may remember Juvan as Elena Rybakina’s first-round opponent in Australia.

The Brit will again be the favorite to advance, against the world number 97, but who else may she need to beat en route to the title?

Emma Raducanu’s projected route to the Transylvania Open title

• 1R [WIN] vs Greet Minnen
• 2R vs Kaja Juvan
• QF vs [7] Olga Danilovic
• SF vs [4] Xinyu Wang
• F vs [2] Jaqueline Cristian

Olga Danilovic, Xinyu Wang, and Jaqueline Cristian are all great players in their own right, but if Raducanu doesn’t win this tournament, she’ll have questions to answer.

It’s been five years since she won the US Open, and while those who expected her to win another Grand Slam may have been overambitious, her record since simply hasn’t been good enough.

She hasn’t won another title, nor reached another WTA final, and looks unlikely to ever establish herself as a real threat to the top players.

Emma Raducanu’s record against the WTA top 10

Raducanu is a combined 4-17 against players currently ranked in the top 10.

She only has a winning head-to-head record against two players: Amanda Anisimova and Belinda Bencic.

If she ever wants to return to the top 10, she’ll need to sort that record out soon.

Raducanu won’t have a chance to play any top-10 players in Romania, though, so her focus must remain on winning her first title since 2021.

Looking to keep her title bid alive, Raducanu will play Juvan in the second round on Wednesday, February 4.