Calacus Weekly Hit & Miss – Emma Raducanu & Brooks Koepke
Every week we look at the best and worst communicators in the sports world from the previous week.
HIT - EMMA RADUCANU
Barely a week since Emma Raducanu stunned the tennis world by winning the US Open, the first qualifier to win a Grand Slam title, and without even dropping a set.
It has only been three months, remember, since Raducanu was sitting her A Levels after taking an 18-month sabbatical from tennis to focus on her studies instead of travelling to smaller tournaments abroad during the pandemic.
When she retired in the fourth round of Wimbledon after encountering breathing difficulties, questions were asked about her potential in the face of expectation.
The US Open changed all that.
The final at Flushing Meadow may have been between two unheralded youngsters, with Leylah Fernandez giving as good as she got during the match, but Raducanu’s steely unflappable performance ultimately swayed even the previously partisan New York crowd.
The way she spoke on court after the final, hugging the trophy in delight, was entirely natural and authentic – there were no rehearsed thank-yous nor key messages she had to weave in.
Late last week she explained that she felt calm in what was the biggest match of her fledgling career.
“I was just having a lot of fun out there. That's what helped because I wasn't thinking at all about anything that was out of my control or that was going on off the court.
“"I think that's the key that helped me have the run I had because I wasn't distracted, I was just focussing on what I had to do and I executed.”
The unaffected and natural Raducanu almost instantly transformed the mood of the nation – her victory a hot topic on social media, mainstream news and across the world.
Here is, after all, a young and very cosmopolitan young tennis player (her mother is Chinese, her father Romanian, she was born in Canada and moved to London as toddler) who almost no-one had heard off before Wimbledon this summer, whose smile and swagger has inspired and enthralled in equal measure.
If Calacus has the opportunity to advise Raducanu following her swift ascent to international stardom, we would have suggested that she relax a little before focusing on the improvement and development that will be necessary with the rest of the Women’s tennis circuit eager to knock her off her perch. And that’s exactly what she has done.
Less than 48 hours after her victory, Raducanu went touring in New York, something she had not been able to do over three weeks of intense competition.
What unadulterated joy to see her smile in delight at the billboard celebrating her success on her Instagram account, which has risen from 2,000 followers in June to almost two million.
With success comes responsibility and opportunity and Raducanu remained her charming self on American morning news channels before a trip to the New York Stock Exchange and the Met Ball, courtesy of Chanel.
That’s the reason why Raducanu has become such a superstar so quickly – the tennis helps, of course, but it’s the natural and charming way she conducts herself that makes everyone fall in love with her.
Virginia Wade, the last British woman to win a Grand Slam title, spoke even before the final about her expectations for Raducanu and the potential she has.
Wade said: “When someone special comes along, you can see they stand head and shoulders over their contemporaries.
“But you do have to be careful. With some people, it all goes to their head. Or they have to deal with so much stuff that it affects their tennis. Look at Naomi Osaka. With Emma, people are going to be after her like bees around a honeypot.”
That will be key for Raducanu and her team now.
The fact that she posted a message in Mandarin (the homeland of her mother) after her US Open win which trended on social media platform Weibo with more than 600 million views, shows that she understands the nature of the global marketing game she is now an integral part of.
Sponsorship opportunities and glamourous invitations will pour in, but the most important thing is that she focuses on developing her tennis and avoids as many distractions as possible – a task her agency IMG will be well aware of.
Jelena Ostapenko, Sloane Stephens and Iga Swiatek have all won Grand Slams in recent memory and then failed to build on that initial success - and it appears that from her management and parents, Raducanu will grounded and focus on being a success on court.
Speaking to the WTA a few days after the final, she explained how she has approached life, the amazing experiences she’s recently had and her plans for the future.
She said: “The work ethic that my parents instilled in me from their own backgrounds definitely has helped because I really push myself to the max every time I step on the court. Every day, I'm really trying to maximize what I've got and maximize my potential.
“I think that I don't find anything too intimidating, I think. It's just quite a nice thing to do because I'm learning so much about myself and what's happening in the whole process of trying to adjust to things I probably wouldn't have done before. But I've had fun doing the things I've done so far.
“It was funny because I was more nervous standing and waiting to take the photos at the Met than going out onto Ashe (US Open court). Because it was such a different experience. It was a bit more intimidating at the start but then I feel like I've learned that I can adapt quite quickly and learn on the job.
“After the US Open I wanted to give myself this week to completely switch off from tennis because it's been an extremely intense but rewarding seven weeks. But I've worked very hard to finish on such a high with the US Open, a whole week off was needed.
“I know I'll get back to work probably Monday or early next week to get back to training again. Schedule-wise, I'm not sure. Maybe Indian Wells, I don't know. I'm going back to London before my next tournament for sure.”
The fact that her parents did not make a huge fuss when she returned home to England – her mother making special dumplings being a highlight – suggests that Raducanu has the support to keep her feet firmly on the ground as she comes to terms with the attention her talent will undoubtedly attract.
MISS – BROOKS KOEPKE
Few would argue that the Ryder Cup is one of the most anticipated events on the golf calendar.
The 43rd event of the biennial competition takes place at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin at the end of September but the build-up to the event has been overshadowed somewhat by America’s Brooks Koepka expressing his frustrations with the format.
In an interview with Golf Digest, Koepke said that he struggles with the format of the competition, which Europe have won four times in the past five meetings.
In a far-reaching interview with Golf Digest, Koepke explained his concerns. He said: “It’s different. It’s hectic. It’s a bit odd, if I’m honest. I don’t want to say it’s a bad week.
“We’re just so individualized, and everybody has their routine and a different way of doing things, and now, it’s like, OK, we have to have a meeting at this time or go do this or go do that.
“It’s the opposite of what happens during a major week. If I break down a major week, it’s so chill. You wouldn’t even believe me. I go to the course. I play nine holes. I go work out. Other than that, I’m sitting and watching TV, taking my mind off golf with relaxing stuff.
“The physical part, I can handle. The mental side, you have to be able to turn it off. Sometimes, the power comes from being able to turn it on. But for me, I get power from turning it off.
“It’s tough. There are times where I’m like, I won my match. I did my job. What do you want from me? I know how to take responsibility for the shots I hit every week.
“Now, somebody else hit a bad shot and left me in a bad spot, and I know this hole is a loss. That’s new, and you have to change the way you think about things.
“You go from an individual sport all the time to a team sport one week a year. It’s so far from my normal routine. I can barely see my [personal] team. It’s hard to even go to the gym.
“I take naps a lot. I might take an hour, hour-and-a-half nap, or just chill on the couch and watch “SportsCenter,” before rounds, after rounds, whatever. There’s no time to do that at the Ryder Cup. There’s no time to decompress.”
The four-time major champion will play in the contest for a third time and contributed three points from four matches on his debut as the US won 17-11 at Hazeltine in 2016 and 1½ points in defeat at Le Golf National in 2018.
Koepke’s comments have not gone down well with Paul Azinger, who led the United States to victory in 2008.
“After reading that, I'm not sure Brooks loves the Ryder Cup that much and if he doesn't love it he should relinquish his spot and get people there who do love the Ryder Cup,” said Azinger.
"Not everyone embraces it, but if you aren't sold on it then I think Brooks should consider whether or not he really wants to be there."
Koepka’s career has been chequered to say the least.
On the first day of the 2018 Ryder Cup at the par-4 sixth hole at Le Golf National near Paris, an errant tee shot hit a female spectator who said she lost sight in her right eye.
And a fascinating sideshow to the Ryder Cup will be Koepke’s very public feud with Bryson DeChambeau, who will also play in the US team.
After a dispute over slow play, Koepka was caught cursing about DeChambeau on a leaked interview and his fans later heckled DeChambeau at a tournament and were escorted off the course.
Koepke has played down their rift affecting US chances and added: “It's only a week, I can put it aside for business. If we're going to be on the same team, I can deal with anybody in the world for a week.
“But I'm not playing with him. I'm pretty sure we're not going to be paired together; put it that way. I think it's kind of obvious. It doesn't matter. I don't think we're going to be high-fiving and having late-night conversations. I do my thing, he does his thing.
“We're on the same team, but it's not an issue at all. I don't view it as an issue. I don't think he does. Like I said, I can put anything aside for a team, business, whatever, just to get the job done. No problem with that."
It will be fascinating to see how Koepke’s sponsors, his US team-mates and the organisers feel about his latest comments and whether he grasps the negative manner in which they have played out.
The question is, will he care?