(Reuters) – Naomi Osaka is hopeful that her stint with new coach Patrick Mouratoglou will develop into a long-term partnership, the four-times Grand Slam champion said on Wednesday after easing into the second round of the China Open.
The 26-year-old split with coach Wim Fissette earlier this month after four years together across two stints and arrived in Beijing this week with Mouratoglou, who previously guided her idol Serena Williams to 10 of her 23 major titles.
Former world number one Osaka is looking to reignite her career following a patchy run of form having returned to the tour nine months ago after a long maternity break.
“I’m calling him my coach right now. I didn’t know there was a lot of interest in my players box. I’d say he’s my coach right now,” Osaka said after beating Lucia Bronzetti 6-3 6-2 in her first match under Mouratoglou.
“I try not to get into relationships with people for the short-term. I try to think of it as a long-term commitment. I like the way he coaches.
“I think it’s going to be really interesting.”
Osaka said she was initially hesitant to approach Frenchman Mouratoglou, who has also worked with Grigor Dimitrov, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Simona Halep and Holger Rune among others.
“The fact that he was Serena’s coach made me want to avoid him just because his persona is so big. This isn’t rude because I found out it’s not true, but I didn’t know … I didn’t know if he was a good coach or he coached Serena,” Osaka said.
“Then I met him, talked to him, worked with him on the court. He absolutely is a really good coach. I’m really glad that he’s taking this project on, as well.
“I would say I’m still a little nervous around him. I look to the floor when he looks at me. I think I do need a lot more time to spend together with him. I’m getting a little more comfortable day by day.”
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
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