With dreams of winning her first Grand Slam title in 2021 Karolina Pliskova has turned to the help of somebody who has already guided some of her rivals to the top prize.
In November it was confirmed that the former world No.1 will be coached by Sascha Bajin. A 36-year-old German who guided Naomi Osaka to her first two Major titles between 2017-2019. During that period he was named WTA coach of the year in 2018. Since then Bajin has also spent stints working with both Kristina Mladenovic and Dayana Yastremska but only achieved moderate success compared to his work with Osaka.
Now Bajin’s focus is on the 28-year-old left-hander who has already won 16 WTA titles during her career. The partnership is very much in its early days but Pliskova admits she likes what she is seeing so far.
“I think it is too early to judge something, but during the past few weeks he has been putting in everything possible to make me feel at my best. I cannot say everything about it now as I don’t want to be in heaven. Let us wait and see how things work out during the season,” she told reporters earlier this week.
Pliskova’s coaching history is one with many tiers. Her previous mentors include Jiří Vaněk (2014–16), David Kotyza (2017), and Tomáš Krupa (2017–18). Furthermore, she has also collaborated with former players Rennae Stubbs and Conchita Martinez, as well as Danni Vallverdu who is best known for his work on the ATP Tour.
Amid a history of coaching changes, Pliskova explains that she is trying to work with those who ‘put their heart into what they do.’ Her hope is that Bajin’s coaching history and commitment will make a good combination for the future.
“One thing for sure is that he [Bajin] has had success with many players. He knows how to be in a big team. He is super positive and there are lot of positive people around him as well, and that’s what I need. I am trying to find the right sort of people who put their entire heart into what they do. I feel Sasha is one of them and I am sure he will put his heart while he is in my team,” Pliskova explained.
Whilst there are high expectations the world No.6 stresses that she believes a large portion of her success is down to her on the court.
“Every time I have had a new coach I have played okay as I still believe that most of the success on court lies in me and not just on the coach. The coach is there to make me feel better and confident,” she added.
Pliskova is the third seed in this week’s Abu Dhabi Open. It will be the first tournament she has played since losing her opening match at the Ostrava Open in October.
