Tennis Star Raducanu Uses Fake Identity ‘Ella’ to Blend In, Wins Big at Indian Wells

British tennis sensation Emma Raducanu revealed she sometimes poses as 'Ella' to enjoy anonymity in public places like coffee shops. The 2021 U.S. Open champion bounced back from recent struggles with a dominant victory at the Indian Wells tournament.

British tennis star Emma Raducanu has found a clever way to escape the spotlight that followed her stunning 2021 U.S. Open victory – she creates an alternate identity named ‘Ella.’

The young athlete’s life transformed dramatically after her breakthrough championship win in New York as a teenager, leading to lucrative sponsorship contracts, tennis sessions with Kate Middleton, and correspondence from the Queen.

However, during a recent visit to a coffee shop in Southern California, when a barista inquired about her name, accent, and tournament plans, Raducanu seized the opportunity for some normalcy.

‘Sometimes I love getting to know people and pretending I’m someone completely different and making up a story. It’s quite fun and refreshing,’ she told reporters at Indian Wells after defeating Anastasia Zakharova 6-1, 6-3 in the second round.

‘I’m Ella quite a lot, which is quite similar (to Emma). I traveled to America to visit my friend on a gap year and I’m working at a summer camp,’ she shared with amusement.

The 25th-seeded player displayed impressive form on Friday, overwhelming the Russian qualifier in under 90 minutes of play.

‘My game plan was to take control of the points, and I think I did that pretty well,’ she explained.

Raducanu arrived in the California desert seeking to overcome a challenging season start, particularly consecutive opening-round defeats in Qatar and Dubai the previous month.

‘In hindsight, I think the Middle East was too much of a push. I wasn’t feeling good health-wise and kind of made myself stay out there, but I probably wouldn’t do the same again,’ she reflected.

‘Preparing for Indian Wells, I’ve been practicing in a way that I enjoyed. I’m seeing progress, moving in a good way, feeling better, and trying to unlock the game style that I enjoy playing.’

Following her early exit at January’s Australian Open, Raducanu parted ways with coach Francisco Roig and has since reconnected with Mark Petchey in an unofficial coaching capacity.

Roig marked the eighth coach in Raducanu’s professional career, and she acknowledged difficulties finding someone who allows her natural playing style to flourish.

‘Of course you need to have discipline and do the fundamentals well, but I have an element of instinctiveness that I feel like some coaches try and coach out of me,’ she said.

‘They want me to play high percentage all the time, and then I feel stuck in something that I’m not necessarily enjoying, and I haven’t practiced doing something else.’

‘I like having the freedom to express myself… that’s a big thing and over the last week, I’m starting to get that.’