By Tennis Now | Thursday, November 7, 2019
"I decided I will no longer work with Conchita," said Karolina Pliskova announcing her split from coach Conchita Martinez.
Photo credit: Porsche Tennis Grand Prix
Karolina Pliskova has turned the page on her partnership with Conchita Martinez.
The second-ranked Pliskova announced she's parted with coach Martinez after a 10-month partnership.
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"I decided I will no longer work with Conchita," Pliskova said in a Facebook post. "It was a tough decision as the season was great.
"Thank you for all this year and wish you only the best. Life is change."
Working with Martinez, who formerly coached Garbine Muguruza and served as Spanish Davis Cup and Fed Cup captain, Pliskova collected four titles this season—Brisbane, Rome, Eastbourne, Zhengzhou—and advanced to the Australian Open semifinals for the first time in seven Melbourne appearances.
The 27-year-old Pliskova initially hired Martinez during the 2018 season to join then coach Rennae Stubbs, whose commentary work with ESPN prevented her from traveling full time. Last May, Pliskova opted to work with Martinez full-time and stop working with Stubbs.
"I had the chance to work with the both of them for a while and I think there were good things and bad things about changing the weeks," Pliskova said in May. "So I decided to work with Conchi only because I like the work, so there's no reason why I should have somebody else on the team."
Pliskova reached the WTA Finals semifinals for the third straight year bowing to world No. 1 and eventual-champion Ashleigh Barty 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. Pliskova concluded the 2019 season with a 52-17 record.
The 2016 US Open finalist is reportedly in discussions with a new coach.
Martinez is one of the nominees for the International Tennis Hall of Fame's class of 2020.