I tracked down Emma Raducanu’s biggest fan at Australian Open

As she heads into Wednesday’s second-round meeting with Anastasia Potapova, Emma Raducanu has acquired that essential accessory for any serious tennis professional: an Australian Open cheer squad.

She is working within a great tradition here. When Sir Andy Murray was regularly reaching finals in Melbourne around 10 years ago, four students used to attend every one of his matches. They wore customised T-shirts spelling out A-N-D-Y and sang “Andy Murray is a ledge [legend]” to the tune of Old MacDonald Had a Farm.

In a feat of fearless journalism that will no doubt be honoured within the industry, Telegraph Sport tracked down the bellower-in-chief and discovered that he was neither lairy nor beery – despite a forest of tattoos – but actually surprisingly personable.

“Emma is a great player to watch, and very charismatic,” said James Bray, 35, who works in financial services. “Plus, I’ve got a soft spot for the Brits because I spent a couple of years living in south London. We go to as many Aussie matches as we can, but I think this one got more attention because it was a bit quieter on Margaret Court Arena on Sunday night and everyone could hear me yell.”

After the match, Raducanu told reporters that she had been grateful for the encouragement. “This one guy in particular was penetrating the crowd’s voice and support. That was really fun and it got me through. I said, of course, he can come to any match. I just need to try to locate him. Yeah, I hope he comes back.”

Bray and his pals Eugene and Hugo should indeed be back for the Potapova match, which will be played on ANZ Arena – the fourth-biggest court on Melbourne Park’s sprawling site – on Wednesday afternoon or early evening. His contribution to the first win was so valuable that the Raducanu camp has supplied him with free tickets, hoping that he and his mates can provide the aural equivalent of a caffeine rush.

As Raducanu – sorry, Raddo – explained on Sunday night, “Sometimes you’ll feel yourself maybe getting a little bit flat for two, three points. When you hear that...” – i.e. Bray’s brayings from the stands – “it kind of wakes you up.

“Sometimes what they say ends up being a pretty good point,” she added. “Like, ‘Use your forehand, use your serve.’ It’s a good reminder. Sometimes the timing could be worked on and coordinated. Maybe I’ll have a word with him before the next match.”

Universally known as “the Happy Slam”, this tournament is patrolled by groups of fans wearing gold and green – colours which derive from Australia’s national flower acacia pycnantha. Just in case you don’t get the message, they often carry inflatable kangaroos to boot.

Yet it is not only the home players who receive lively support. Melbourne is such a melting pot that we see huge turnouts from all sorts of ethnic communities, from the Greeks who cheer for 2023 finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas to Novak Djokovic’s flag-waving Serbs.

And then there is the story of Russian heartthrob Marat Safin. When playing the 2002 final here, Safin invited three glamorous blondes into his player box, who were promptly dubbed “The Safinettes” by goggle-eyed reporters.

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