MOSCOW, Oct 27Russian coach Dmitry Tursunov said that he stopped working with the British tennis player Emma Radukanu, as he could not agree on the terms of cooperation with her. Tursunov has been working with Radukanu since July. In August, the Briton failed to defend the title of winner of the US Open, losing in the first round to Frenchwoman Alize Cornet. In October, the Russian coach completed cooperation with Radukan and began working with the Swiss representative Belinda Bencic.
"I left Emma regardless of whether another tennis player was available. We didn't agree on the terms, there were some red flags that just can't be ignored. I didn’t jump from one tennis player to another, I wouldn’t do it,” said Tursunov, quoted by Tennis Majors. — It is my choice. I could have stayed and agreed to whatever her team had to offer. But deep down I felt it was wrong. As difficult as the decision to leave was, I felt it was the right decision. I wanted to stay. But intellectually I knew that I had to leave".
«Emma is just great. She is hardworking, does not think or act like a superstar. She wants to improve and is obsessed with tennis. I think this is a rather rare combination. So I really enjoyed working with her. It was a very difficult decision for me to leave a player whom I love and respect,» the Russian specialist added. Tursunov noted that Bencic contacted him and offered cooperation when he worked with Radukan. «She called me and asked if I was free and interested in working with her, I told her that I am currently working with Emma, so it is out of the question, but I will let her know if anything changes. «when we couldn't agree with Emma, I called Belinda. I said that it looks like I'm free, so we met, talked, and then just decided to start working together,» the coach said.