TBH I’m a bit nonplussed that the ways of Mr and Mrs Raducanu are even the slightest bit controversial. I’ve always admired what [little, granted] I know of Emma’s upbringing – quite possibly the most well-rounded education and normal childhood for a top tennis pro ever imo.

Her parents made it a point to expose her to all sorts of activities – different sports, the arts and of course, ensured her academic standing was never sacrificed. Like most parents (and perhaps, especially, as @eraddict suggests, immigrant parents from Communist countries), they did what they thought gave Emma the best chances to succeed. And she has in spades. She’s managed all this with a very loyal group of friends from childhood. Simply tells me Emma grew up with so much love*.

*not suggesting that this is what's being debated; just a little confused as to why her parents, father particularly, seems to catch strays

 

Can this discussion about parenting move elsewhere?

 

Also I don’t think Emma ever said she couldn’t make or keep friend. Only that she couldn’t go out with them very much. She had a lot of friends in secondary school, as was apparent when she went to the graduation ceremony and posted photos on IG. She also easily made friends in tennis who are now life long friends. Issy in NZ, Ben in the U.S. Etc. We’ve joked on EE about how she has so many best friends. And she’s always talking about how great it is to have all her friends around her at Wimbledon. She’s definitely not somebody lacking for friends!

 

BTW, I was just trying to give my perspective on the Asian parenting philosophy, not that I personally fully endorse it. I think you can both teach your child the value of hard work and perserverance, as well as praise them when praise is due.

But how you praise your child is really critial, according to psychology research. A Stanford professor, Carol Dweck, showed that first-graders given good math grades and praised for their effort went on to do much better than others praised for their intelligence for the same grades. And a UPenn professor, Angela Duckworth, showed that "grit", or what Emma calls resilience, the ability to work hard for a long period of time with relatively little immediate return, is what predicts long-term success and happiness.

Parenting is not easy. It's hard to strike that perfect balance between encouraging your child to always strive for more despite adversities and to hone that "grit", while not making them feel discouraged because their parents don't ever seem satisfied with/proud of what they've already achieved. But honestly, I think Emma's parents have done a really good job -- she is that perfect combination of having both resilience and self belief. What more can you ask from parenting? Parents can only do so much. The rest is up to the kid.

 

I recommend you to read the article I posted over here. The nuance here is her parents are "hard to please" by Emma's admission and this aligns well with how Asian parents raise their children. You can't be never impressed by anything your child does even if it is something very impressive. I would like to know how the Raducanus celebrated Emma winning the US Open the way she did. This can't go unnoticed and not be celebrated as the big thing it is otherwise it shows her parents understand nothing not only about tennis but about sports in general. It can't be like 'Okay Emma you won the US Open as a qualifier and you're the first ever to do so" and let it go like a normal thing not even celebrating. Acting unimpressed by everything even when it's impressive is kind of stupid to be honest. You cannot go to an expert in anything and be like 'Come on impress me so I let solve whatever problem I have". Tursunov, with everything bad he might have done when it comes to Emma's wrist issues, nailed this down by saying "I got tired of having to prove myself every day and that's why I left". Coaches are not here to impress Ian or live up to Emma's IQ they are here to train Emma and help her improve.

 

LOL Any parents in the world, would consider themself successful if their kids were a fraction as good as Emma: career accomplished (not to mention financially set for life) by 18, in excellent physical form, with a sweet and bubbly personality that makes everybody want to be her friend and enough inner strength to not rely on others for her own happiness.

 

You would think tiger parenting would produce more Sabalenka's.