Patrick Mouratoglou suggests he ran out of time to solve Naomi Osaka's woes but insists that he has no regrets over accepting the job.
After 10 months of working together, Osaka decided to stop working with Mouratoglou just before the start of the WTA 1000 tournament in Montreal. During their tenure, the former world No. 1 showed some positive flashes, like reaching the Auckland final and winning her first clay at the WTA 125 tournament in Saint-Malo. But the main reason why the Japanese brought the French coach wasn't accomplished - that was doing well on the biggest stage, specifically Grand Slams.
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To Mouratoglou's defense, it should be noted that Osaka dealt with a back injury in late 2024 and was also hampered by an abdominal issue at the start of 2025.
Now, in her first tournament since splitting with Mouratoglou and adding Tomasz Wiktorowski to herteam, the Japanese has made the semifinal of the WTA 1000 tournament in Montreal. Addressing that, the French coach tells CNN that he is happy for the 27-year-old and that he is rooting for her to "go all the way."
Then, he shed light on some of the reasons that led to their split.
Mouratoglou: I thought Osaka lacked her past competitiveness... We never solved it
The thing that was missing was the competitiveness. I think shes a great competitor, but at that time she was not as good as a competitor as I think can be and she has been in the past. And this is the thing that we didnt solve. I wish we could have more time to solve it. But we didnt, thats life, and I have no regrets on that because thats the rule when you work in high level. I mean, time is important, and you have to solve the problems fast. So I think that was the key that was missing," the French coach told CNN.
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In the same interview, Mouratoglou said that he told Osaka she was ready to win but just needed to find the right guidance. Considering how the Japanese's debut tournament with Wiktorowski has been going, she might have found that right piece.
