{"id":50617,"date":"2025-08-06T23:12:09","date_gmt":"2025-08-06T23:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/50617\/"},"modified":"2025-08-06T23:12:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-06T23:12:09","slug":"naomi-osakas-former-coach-seen-training-with-top-20-wta-star-ahead-of-the-cincinnati-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/50617\/","title":{"rendered":"Naomi Osaka’s former coach seen training with top 20 WTA star ahead of the Cincinnati Open"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Several big names have made coaching moves on the WTA Tour recently, in a bid to achieve Grand Slam success.<\/p>\n

2021 US Open champion Emma Raducanu recently hired Francisco Roig<\/a> as her full-time coach.<\/p>\n

The Spaniard has previously coached Rafael Nadal<\/a> and Matteo Berrettini and will bring a wealth of experience to the 22-year-old\u2019s team.<\/p>\n

Another player who made a switch was Naomi Osaka, who replaced Patrick Mouratoglou with Tomasz Wiktorowski<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"NaomiPhoto by Robert Prange\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

The move paid off straight away, as Osaka qualified for the semifinals of the Canadian Open<\/a>, where she will play Denmark\u2019s Clara Tauson.<\/p>\n

Just days before the Cincinnati Open<\/a> begins, a third player has been seen with a new coach.<\/p>\n

Sascha Bajin seen training Diana Shnaider in Cincinnati<\/p>\n

In news originally reported by Dinara Safina and Anna Chakvetadze on Telegram<\/a>, Diana Shnaider has been seen training with Sascha Bajin in Cincinnati.<\/p>\n

Shnaider has struggled to find the right coach in 2025, despite her best efforts.<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Shnaider brought in Safina<\/a> as her coach, although their partnership was short-lived, as the pair split after just one month together.<\/p>\n

\"DinaraPhoto by Robert Prange\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Ahead of the grass-court season, Shnaider hired Carlos Martinez, an experienced WTA<\/a> coach, who guided her to the quarterfinals of the Queen\u2019s Club Championships.<\/p>\n

Following their split, Shnaider is now said to be working with German coach Bajin, who has won two Grand Slam titles during his career.<\/p>\n

Bajin, best known as Serena Williams\u2019<\/a> former hitting partner, began his coaching career alongside Osaka in 2017.<\/p>\n

The pair won two majors together before splitting in 2019, just weeks after Osaka\u2019s Australian Open<\/a> triumph.<\/p>\n

Osaka and Bajin exchanged pleasantries on social media following their split, as their Grand-Slam winning partnership came to an end.<\/p>\n

Hey everyone, I will no longer be working together with Sascha. I thank him for his work and wish him all the best in the future.<\/p>\n

\u2014 NaomiOsaka\u5927\u5742\u306a\u304a\u307f (@naomiosaka) February 11, 2019<\/a> <\/p>\n

View Tweet<\/p>\n

\u201cHey everyone, I will no longer be working with Sascha [Bajin],\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thank him for his work and wish him all the best in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you Naomi [Osaka]. I wish you nothing but the best as well. What a ride that was. Thank you for letting me be part of this,\u201d replied Bajin.<\/p>\n

There were, however, rumors of discontent between the pair, as Osaka revealed that she didn\u2019t talk to Bajin before the Australian Open final, during her post-match press conference.<\/p>\n

Moving on with his career, Bajin worked with several other WTA stars, but couldn\u2019t replicate the success he achieved with Osaka.<\/p>\n

YearsPlayerNationality2017-2019Naomi OsakaJapanese2019Kristina MladenovicFrench2019-2020Dayana YastremskaUkrainian2020-2022, 2023Karolina PliskovaCzech2024Alycia ParksAmerican2024-2025Donna VekicCroatian2025\u2026Diana ShnaiderRussianSascha Bajin\u2019s coaching career<\/p>\n

Only time will tell how Bajin will get on with Shnaider, but the pair will certainly hope to make a positive start together in Cincinnati.<\/p>\n

Who will Diana Shnaider play in her first match with Sascha Bajin as coach?<\/p>\n

Entering the tournament as the number 14 seed, Shnaider will receive a bye into round two, where she could face one of the hottest prospects on the WTA Tour.<\/p>\n

Canadian Open semifinalist Victoria Mboko<\/a> will play a qualifier in round one, and will face off against Shnaider should she advance.<\/p>\n

Mboko has been the talk of the tennis world this week, advancing to her first career WTA 1000 semifinal, picking up a marquee win over Coco Gauff<\/a> along the way.<\/p>\n

\"CocoPhoto by Minas Panagiotakis\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

There are, however, questions over whether Mboko will play the Cincinnati Open<\/a>, as she said she was \u2018not sure\u2019 she would compete, following her quarterfinal win in Montreal.<\/p>\n

Shnaider would no doubt welcome the challenge of playing Mboko should she make the trip to Cincinnati, but will be looking to make a deep run regardless of who stands across the net from her in round two.<\/p>\n

Diana Shnaider\u2019s projected route to the title (By ranking)2R v Victoria Mboko3R v [22] Magdalena Frech4R v [3] Iga SwiatekQF v [5] Amanda AnisimovaSF v [1] Aryna SabalenkaF v [2] Coco Gauff<\/p>\n

A potential fourth-round tie with Iga Swiatek<\/a> would certainly be one to look out for, after the pair entertained fans with a thriller in Madrid earlier this year.<\/p>\n

Coming up just short, Shnaider lost to Swiatek 0-6, 7-6, 4-6, in the fourth round of the Madrid Open.<\/p>\n

Only time will tell if they will meet for a second time in Cincinnati, but you certainly won\u2019t want to miss any of the action when the tournament begins on Thursday, August 7.<\/p>\n