The Japanese Naomi Osaka announced, after the victory obtained in the first round of the tournament in Beijing, that she has started working with Patrick Mouratoglou, reports AFP
Naomi Osaka, world number 73, defeated Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti, world number 77, 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the Masters 1000 tournament in Beijing, with Patrick Mouratoglou in the box.
The Japanese player formalized the beginning of their professional relationship at a press conference: “Yes, I call him my coach,” she answered a question at the press conference. “I didn’t know there was so much interest in my lodge, but yeah, he’s my coach right now. I try not to get involved in short-term collaborations. I try to think of it as a long-term commitment. I like the way he trains. I think it will be very interesting.”
The former US Open winner paid tribute to her former Belgian coach Wim Fissette: “Wim is one of my favorite people, one of my favorite coaches. It was nothing personal. Nothing special happened. I just felt that I had It’s a shame, because I wanted to raise trophies with him. But I’m at a stage in my life where I don’t want to regret it. And Patrick seemed to have the information I needed I’m learning”.
Patrick Mouratouglou is Simona Halep’s former coach. The period of the Romanian’s collaboration with him is exactly the period in which Halep was tested positive in an anti-doping test.
