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Osaka on Sascha Split, Coaching Search



Money can't buy happiness and Naomi Osaka says salary wasn't the cause of her split with coach Sascha Bajin.

The world No. 1 says public speculation that a dispute over money prompted the parting is wrong and "hurtful."

Watch: Monfils Tops Wawrinka To Win Rotterdam

Osaka says the reason for the split is simple: she wasn't happy working with Bajin anymore.

"I think during the Australian Open, I was just trying to tell myself to get through it," Osaka told the media in Dubai where she will face Kristina Mladenovic in her opener. "I'm not sure, but I think you guys noticed.

"Everyone thinks it was a money-related issue, but it wasn't. For me, that's one of the most hurtful things I've ever heard. I travel with everyone on my team, I see them more than my family. I would never do that to them.



"I'm not going to say anything bad about him because, of course, I'm really grateful for all the things that he's done. I wouldn't come here and say anything bad. The biggest thing is I don't want myself to think to be successful I have to put success over happiness, because if I'm not happy being around certain people I'm not going to torture myself."

A week ago, Osaka announced the break with Bajin on Twitter.


The pair began working together in December of 2017 and shortly thereafter Osaka started her meteoric rise up the rankings. She defeated Daria Kasatkina to win the BNP Paribas Open title at Indian Wells last March.

Osaka swept Serena Williams in the US Open final winning her maiden Grand Slam title last September then defeated Petra Kvitova in three sets to collect her second straight Slam at the Australian Open.

The 21-year-old Japanese, who was ranked No. 72 a year ago, said she'll start considering coaching candidates after Dubai and plans to have a new coach in place in time for her Indian Wells title defense next month.

"After this tournament, I would want to start looking at options," Osaka said. "It’s not really ideal to go to Indian Wells without a coach."



So what's the key prerequisite for her next coach?

A clear communicator and plenty of positivity are among the assets Osaka values most.

"For me, just to have a positive mindset," Osaka said. "I don’t want someone that’s in the box saying negative stuff. That would be the worst. Yeah, someone that’s kind of direct, not afraid to say things to my face. I’d rather someone say it directly to me than go around my back. That’s one of the biggest things."

Photo credit: Mark Peterson/Corleve

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