Emma Raducanu seen with new boyfriend John Friend in London park

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Soon after her runner-up finish at Queen’s, Emma Raducanu was spotted enjoying some time away from tennis with her new boyfriend, PR expert John Friend, in London’s Battersea Park.

The 23-year-old Raducanu won two matches on Saturday to reach her first grass-court final at the HSBC Championships in London and was one victory away from her first title since her historic 2021 US Open triumph. However, Croatia’s Donna Vekic defeated her in Sunday’s final 6-0 7-6(6). Nevertheless, it was a successful week for British No.1 and soon afterwards we could see that her love life is booming as well.

Emma Raducanu

A reporter from The Scottish Sun noticed Raducanu enjoying a relaxed outing with her 32-year-old boyfriend. The pair were spotted walking a dog together before sitting on a park bench, where they were seen chatting, holding hands, laughing, and sharing a kiss. Beyond their public appearance together, few details about the relationship are known. It remains unclear how the couple met, when they started dating, and how their romance developed.

An observer shared, “Emma and her man looked like they didn’t have a care in the world as they meandered through the crowds. They looked besotted with one another. You wouldn’t have thought that, hours earlier, she’d suffered a defeat on the court. Any disappointment looked like it had evaporated as they cuddled. They certainly didn’t seem to be self-conscious of being together and affectionate, and there were plenty of other people around.”

When Raducanu was younger, her parents were strongly against her having a boyfriend, as they wanted her to focus fully on training. Friend is only the second man the WTA star has been publicly linked with. Her previous relationship was with Carlo Agostinelli, the son of American billionaire and investment banker Roberto Agostinelli and Dior PR manager Mathilde Favier. The couple began dating in May 2023 and quickly attracted significant public attention. The relationship ended in June 2024, after which Raducanu deleted their joint photos from social media and unfollowed Agostinelli on Instagram.

When it comes to tennis, Raducanu’s next stop was supposed to be this week’s Lexus Nottingham Open, but she has withdrawn from the WTA 250 tournament due to a grueling, rain-interrupted run to the final at Queen’s. The world No. 31’s next scheduled tournament is Wimbledon, running from June 29 to July 12.

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Marija Zivlak
Marija Zivlak is the founder and editor-in-chief of Women’s Tennis Blog, a trusted source for in-depth coverage of the WTA Tour, tennis fashion, and player insights. Based in Belgrade, Serbia, she has been reporting on women’s tennis for over 18 years and has contributed exclusive fashion articles to the official WTA website. Marija launched Women’s Tennis Blog on March 31, 2007 to provide fans with accurate, engaging, and up-to-date tennis news. Her expertise and deep connections within the sport allow her to offer unique perspectives on tennis trends, gear, and events.

2 COMMENTS

  1. It’s great to see Emma looking so relaxed and happy in Battersea Park after that grueling week at Queen’s. Losing a final is always tough, but clearing your head before Wimbledon is the best move she could make. As a huge tennis fan, I’ve been trying to track all the live grass-court tune-ups leading up to the grand slam. I usually run the xuper tv apk on my streaming box to catch the international feeds of these WTA matches since it handles live sports broadcasts without any lag or buffering. Looking forward to seeing how she performs at SW19!

  2. Interesting to see how much media attention Emma’s private life gets, especially with her new partner being a PR expert himself! Her parents used to be so strict about dating, but finding a healthy balance outside of the court can actually help a player’s mental game. Whenever I’m reading through sports blogs or waiting for tournament schedules to drop, I like to have a clean setup on my phone. I’ve been using the xuper tv app lately to stream quick sports highlights or catch a movie during match delays because the interface skips all the messy pop-up ads completely.

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