Naomi Osaka is no stranger to making bold moves, both on and off the tennis court. In a recent shake-up, the Japanese sensation announced a significant change in her team, parting ways with her former coach Wim Fissette for the second time. This decision sparked quite a buzz in the tennis world, especially as Osaka was soon spotted hitting the courts with none other than Serena Williams’ ex-coach, Patrick Mouratoglou. Naturally, fans and insiders alike have been left wondering—what led to this sudden split? Osaka, always one to be candid, has now given her side of the story.

The 26-year-old engaged in an interview with the press at the China Open, where she has made a winning start to her campaign. Osaka defeated Lucia Bronzetti in the first round in straight sets and would be facing Yulia Putintseva in the next round. She opened up about the reasons that led to her split with Fissette and her new stint with Mouratoglou. 

In the interview, Osaka clarified that there was no rift between her and Fissette. “I think Wim is one of my favorite people. I don’t want to say ‘one of’, but definitely one of my favorite coaches. It wasn’t, like, anything personal. Like nothing crazy happened.” She justified her decision and said that she wanted to make some changes to her game to attain more success. “It sucks because I wanted to lift trophies with him. I know we went into that relationship wanting to do that together.” Remember, this was Osaka’s second stint with Fissette. 

The duo partnered first between 2019 and 2022, that witnessed Osaka winning three of her four Grand Slams. Their second stint started in 2023 but was marred by poor performances. This season, Osaka witnessed several shocking defeats and early exits, including at the hard court surfaces where she has witnessed most of her success. In fact, she was ousted in the second round of her US Open campaign. Osaka further justified her decision by highlighting these facts.

“I think I’m at a stage in my life that I don’t want to have regrets.” She claimed that she wishes to learn as much as possible at this stage of her career and found Mouratoglou to be the best fit for the task. “Patrick seemed like the guy with I guess the information that I wanted to learn from.” Soon after her split, Osaka was seen practicing with the seasoned coach Mouratoglou at the UCLA tennis center. She also arrived at the China Open along with Mouratoglou, who has a vast experience of coaching some of the iconic names of the arena.

For the unversed, the 54-year-old has worked with the likes of Laura Robson, Grigor Dimitrov, Serena Williams, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Simona Halep. Just before joining Osaka’s team, he was working with the Danish star, Holger Rune. While it will be interesting to see the outcome of Naomi Osaka’s latest partnership, she has indeed struggled quite a lot this season. 

“It’s really draining,” When Naomi Osaka opened up on her challenges 

It would have definitely been a shocking experience for the enthusiasts who saw Osaka at her peak to witness her struggling terribly this season. While the star player did reach the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open and the Libema Open after coming back on the courts from her hiatus, which she took due to her pregnancy, the results that followed were not satisfactory. Osaka herself opened up about her woes.

In a heartfelt admission after the Cincinnati Masters, where she was whisked out in the second qualifiers, Osaka said, “My biggest issue currently isn’t losses though, my biggest issue is that I don’t feel like I’m in my body.” Continuing further, she elaborated on her struggles. “It’s a strange feeling, missing balls I shouldn’t miss, hitting balls softer than I remember I used to. I try to tell myself, ‘It’s fine, you’re doing great. Just get through this one and keep pushing,’ but mentally, it’s really draining.” She also compared these struggles to that of her “postpartum,” which was unsettling for her.

For now, it would be interesting to see if Osaka can return to her dominant form with a change of team. Can she shine brightly at the Asian Swing? Well, only time will tell.