Coach Patrick Mouratoglou admits he has certain regrets about his tenure with Naomi Osaka as the French coach confesses he probably could have done some things differently that would have made the Japanese "more efficient during matches."
In late July, a high-profile partnership between Osaka and Mouratoglou came to an end after 10 months. When the former world No. 1 hired Serena Williams' former long-time coach, the goal was crystal clear - return to being one of the best and a Grand Slam contender. While the Japanese reached the final of this year's WTA 500 in Auckland and won her first clay title at the WTA 125 (Challenger) tournament in Saint-Malo, she still battled inconsistency for the most part during their partnership.
During a conversation for Serve on SI, Mouratoglou claimed that Osaka dealt with three "major injuries" when he first became her coach, but also added that those issues were resolved and that she "would not get injured anytime soon." The French coach also insisted that the 27-year-old improved under his guidance, but it just wasn't translating into good results.
Mouratoglou: I probably missed a few things that could have made Osaka more efficient during matches
"I think she improved her game a lot, which is also a positive, and in practice, the level she's able to play was really, really high. Now the only thing, which is in a way, the most important thing, is to perform during matches, and in that matter, I'm not happy with the way I could have helped her better," the French coach told Serve on SI.
"So, of course, I thought a lot about it. I was thinking about it during, but I even kept on thinking about it afterwards. I think I probably missed a few things that could have made her more efficient during the matches."
After saying goodbye to Mouratoglou, Osaka hired Iga Swiatek's long-time coach Tomasz Wiktorowski. In their first two tournaments together, the Japanese finished as runner-up at the WTA 1000 tournament in Montreal and made the US Open semifinal.
Reflecting on it, Mouratoglou said he was "happy" to see Osaka finally breaking through and playing the way he believed she could.
