Osaka begins trial with former Swiatek coach Wiktorowski following split from Mouratoglou.

MONTREAL, July 29 — Japan’s four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has begun a coaching trial with Polish coach Tomasz Wiktorowski, following her split with Patrick Mouratoglou after less than a year together.

Osaka announced the end of her partnership with Mouratoglou — the former coach of Serena Williams — via social media on Monday, shortly before defeating Canadian qualifier Ariana Arseneault 6-4, 6-2 in 76 minutes during the first round of the WTA Canadian Open in Montreal.

Now ranked 49th, Osaka started working with Wiktorowski in Canada. He previously coached Agnieszka Radwańska from 2011 to 2018, helping her reach the Wimbledon final and attain a world No. 2 ranking in 2012. He also guided Iga Swiatek from late 2021 until October last year, during which she won four of her six Grand Slam titles. Swiatek went on to win her latest major at Wimbledon earlier this month.

With her win over Arseneault, Osaka improved to 11-1 against players ranked outside the top 100. She will face 13th seed Liudmila Samsonova next in the second round. They are tied 2-2 in previous encounters, though Osaka claimed both wins on hard courts.

The 27-year-old former world No. 1 began working with Mouratoglou in September last year.

“Merci Patrick, it was such a great experience learning from you,” Osaka posted. “Wishing you nothing but the best. You’re one of the coolest people I’ve ever met, and I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

Mouratoglou responded on Instagram, expressing gratitude for the journey and telling Osaka he would always be rooting for her.

During their time together, Osaka reached the Auckland final in January but was forced to retire with an abdominal injury. She also withdrew in the third round of the Australian Open with the same issue. She later won her first WTA title since 2021 at the L’Open 35 de Saint-Malo in May, but suffered early exits at both Roland Garros and Wimbledon. — AFP