There has been something upliftingly familiar about the Emma Raducanu we have seen of late.

A beaming smile; an effortless athleticism in that tanned, long-legged gait; a lightness in her mood.

That lightness was in abundance when she was photographed in a tender embrace with a rather strapping companion, who appeared to be doing a very good job indeed of buoying her spirits after losing in the final at Queen's Club.

On an early evening date in Battersea Park, the two looked a perfect match: she, cool and elegant in a blue and white striped shirt: he all taut muscle in co-ordinating light blue sportswear.

Forget the game she had lost just hours earlier – after a triumphant run that took spectators back to the heady summer of 2021 when Emma, then an 18-year-old fresh from her A-levels, took the tennis world by storm winning the US Open – she looked happy and relaxed.

As one well-placed tennis insider tells the Daily Mail: 'Emma's happier than I've seen her for years. It's like she knows where she's going and understands herself. She's got her confidence and joie de vivre back.'

And part of the reason for her return to form is new boyfriend, John Friend, 32, who runs a PR business after a long stint in the Army with 4 Para, the elite Paratrooper reserve regiment.

There is no doubt that like Emma, this dashing young man has dealt with adversity. For his adult life has been marked by more tragedy than anyone should have to bear, with the loss of his mother and two brothers in the last eight years.

The Harrow-educated, super-fit marathon runner lives in Battersea, a short hop from the park where he strolled with Emma and his American bulldog on June 16. He grew up there with his mother Antoinette and father Tony, a high-flying boardroom adviser and former managing partner at communications firm Instinctif, and his two older brothers, Will and Tom.

Antoinette, who worked for British Airways, was diagnosed with incurable breast cancer in August 2016 and died in December 2018. The brothers set up their own charity, Team Antoinette, in her memory and went on to raise almost £65,000 for Action Against Cancer.

But more tragedy was to follow. Will, a media entrepreneur who left the UK for the US, where he married actress Bevin Prince of One Tree Hill fame, was struck by lightning during a boating trip off the coast of North Carolina in 2022. He was 33.

Two years later, Tom died. He too was 33. He had authored scientific papers both on cancer research and virology.

Although Emma has not experienced the depths of John's personal agony, the tennis player has had a 'tough few years' says a source. After all the glory of winning the US open in 2021, further triumph remained frustratingly elusive. The coach who led her to victory was dropped, and as sponsorship deals rolled in, eight more coaches came and went.

There were injuries, illness, a stalker who was given a five-year restraining order after walking 23 miles to the tennis star's home, another who became fixated on the star last year.

During one match, she was forced to hide in tears behind the umpire's chair when the 'fixated' admirer was spotted, and subsequently removed, from the stands. 'People think that winning a tennis Open is a pathway to riches,' added the source. 'But it opened the doors to trouble and expectations, and people arriving from nowhere wanting to feed off her fame. She lost the life she had.'

But now, with a new relationship brewing, there seems to have been a reset. They have enjoyed some dates but there's nothing formal – yet – says a pal.

This time last year, there was a whirl of rumour about a fairytale romance with Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz. But this was never more than a friendship between two players about to play mixed doubles together.

Prior to that Emma dated another Harrow alumnus, Carlo Agostinelli, the son of billionaire financier Robert Agostinelli and Mathilde Favier, the Parisian public relations manager at Dior, for which Emma signed as a global ambassador. But the relationship 'ran its course' by 2024.

In a frank interview that year, Emma, whose parents have been hugely influential in her sporting career, revealed the tight rein they had over her as a teenager.

'My parents were very much against [boyfriends] as it interfered with training,' she said of dad Ian, who is Romanian and mum Renee, who is Chinese.

'When I was younger I wasn't even allowed to hang out with my girlfriends. A lot of the time I was very resentful. But it made me very confident and comfortable in my own company, which is also a big strength.'

Emma's friends are deeply protective of her, with good reason.

They are pleased to see her so happy; they say that John Friend, whose father is a member at Queen's Club, seems very nice, but they are on guard.

As one friend tells the Daily Mail: 'I just worry about Emma because she's kind of vulnerable. I guess they met through his dad.' Another tells the Daily Mail: 'It's not just about having a boyfriend. It's more than that. She's happy with the way her life is going. It's like she's not striving and panicking as much as she once did. But John makes her happy – that's all that matters.'

Over in Romania, Emma's beloved grandmother Niculina, now 92, agrees.

With a smile she says: 'She never told me about any boyfriend. But whatever she likes is fine by me. I've never known her to be in love not even when she was in school. She went to school and then to practise. She never mentioned any boys.'

What has been given a resounding round of applause has been Emma's decision to return to the coach who guided her to US Open success, Brit Andrew Richardson.

Richardson could have felt slighted by being so abruptly dropped; certainly, there are commentators and friends of Emma who say 'she should never have dumped him'. But when Emma sent Richardson a message before the French Open asking if he would rejoin her support squad, he accepted.

She has since spent more time at home, back in her old stomping ground of Bromley. Last year, she signed up for an online art history course (she's already a maths whizz, with an A* in maths A-level and an A in economics).

Her glossy image is changing direction, too.

While she is understood to remain an ambassador for luxury houses Dior and Tiffany & Co, in February it was revealed that she had signed with high-street chain Uniqlo, following in the footsteps of Roger Federer, thus ending a long-term association with Nike, which had signed her as a teenager. The new deal is reportedly worth £2.6 million per year.

Last year she became a global ambassador for Wild, a cosmetics company known for its refillable deodorants and emphasis on sustainability. This week she revealed her own eco-friendly vegan deodorant for the brand's 'the Garden of England' collection, inspired by her upbringing in Kent.

It all makes for a more relaxed vibe, although admittedly still a very affluent one. Accounts for her company Harbour 6 show assets of £13.4 million last year.

Rumours of a niggling injury aside, those in her circle say she's in a better place than ever.

'When Emma won the US Open, she was pushed into all manner of PR opportunities with Dior and diamonds and all sorts. It all looked fun, but it was draining. It definitely affected her tennis, and it was not her at all.

'I don't think she felt she had any control over what was happening because this was all new, so her agents took over and did what they thought was best for her. Now she's a bit more in control and has got a better team around her.

'There was a time when she struggled to get on with her parents because they were very strict and didn't want her to do anything but train. I think she felt they should have been parents first and tennis fans second and she struggled with that.'

As another associate adds: 'It's all about the new Emma. She's like the old Emma, but not so stressed and anxious. She's settled and not frantically rushing around the place.'

Emma has acknowledged this, too. In an interview with Grazia magazine this week, she alluded to what went before.

'I didn't have the backbone,' she said. 'I would try and justify a certain answer in my head because I thought that was the "right" thing to do or say or the "right" person to work with, even if it didn't feel right. People who you thought were really fun or exciting don't always turn out to be good for you.'

Emma now seems to be a young woman making her own decisions. As to whether John Friend proves to be the magic ingredient, we'll have to wait and see.