French tennis player and analyst Alize Lim believes the rumored partnership between Naomi Osaka and Patrick Mouratoglou could definitely turn into something great as she sees multiple ways of how Serena Williams' former long-time coach can help the Japanese.
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After the former world No. 1 gave birth and launched her preparation for her comeback around 12 months ago, she reached out to Wim Fissette - the coach who guided her to four Grand Slam titles in the past. From Day 1, the 26-year-old highlighted that her goal was to return to being one of the best in the game and contend for Majors.
But nearly 10 months into her post-pregnancy comeback, Osaka is just 19-16 - hasn't made it past the quarterfinal stage in any events - and also picked up three second-round outings in Slams and had one first-round exit. Also, it became pretty evident in the last two months that the Japanese was growing more frustrated and disappointed with her game and results.
All coach Fissette paid the price as the current world No. 76 decided last weekend to part ways with the Belgian coach. Shortly after the news dropped, it was also reported that she already had a new coach in place - none other than Mouratoglou.
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And this week, Osaka was spotted arriving in Beijing with the French coach, who worked with Stefanos Tsitsipas, Holger Rune and Simona Halep in recent years.
Lim: Not surprised, Mouratoglou can help Osaka tactically and psychologically
Following some tough losses - including some of the recent ones - the 26-year-old indicated that certain doubts were starting to creep into her mind. Also, she recently made that "out-of-body" revelation where she shared that she didn't feel like she was in her body and that certain feelings or touches were maybe lost.
However, if true that Mouratoglou is her new coach, the Eurosport tennis expert is optimistic that he is the right man to guide the Japanese to the Promised Land.
I was not surprised because, despite the fact she was coming back from motherhood, we knew how high her goals were. For sure, shes 100% disappointed and 100% wants to go higher quickly. She has the weapons and she has the level to go back there remember her match against Iga Swiatek at the French Open. She knows more than us. She can feel it inside and I feel it would be a great association with Patrick Mouratoglou, to be honest," Lim said on Tennis Channel's Inside-In podcast.
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"Its so exciting to watch her play. She would bring so much to womens tennis if she could get back to that level. It will be interesting to see what he does tactically with her but also psychologically. I think his strength is to really help the player believe in themselves. This what she needs now, and thats life; if the sparks happen, and if theres chemistry between two people, you cannot know before trying.
Osaka didn't shy away from revealing her true feelings after the US Open exit
Before her US Open return, the two-time champion said it was a circled Slam on her calendar and that she wanted to do well. But after impressively dismantling Jelena Ostapenko in the first round, the former world No. 1 didn't deliver the same level of play in her next match and lost to Karolina Muchova in two sets.
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"It's a little rough because I do take these losses really personally. It's like a dramatic word, but I feel like my heart dies every time I lose. I've been trying to be more mature and learn and talk more about them," Osaka admitted after the loss.
In the same presser, the Japanese also noted that her woes go beyond this year.
"I feel like I'm coming back from pregnancy, but also it wasn't like in 2022 I was the best version of myself. So in some way I had to catch up to that, and then also I'm trying to pass it at the same time. It's been a little difficult because obviously I can only gauge how I'm doing by results. I feel faster. I feel better, but I lost in the second round. So it's a little rough," she explained.
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"I think this year for me has been a learning year. I put a lot of energy and effort into all the tournaments that I played. Australian Open was so fast, so I probably forgot that one. I enjoyed learning how to enjoy the French Open. I haven't been to Wimbledon in years, so it was nice to go back there."
At the WTA 1000 tournament in Beijing, it is expected that Osaka will officially confirm Mouratoglou as her new coach.
