French No.1 Kristina Mladenovic has announced that she and coach Sascha Bajin will split following the conclusion of her 2019 campaign.

The pair began their collaboration in mid-April, when Mladenovic was the WTA World No.64, and under his guidance she rose to No.39 in singles, while also topping the doubles ranking for the first time in her career, aided by a successful run at the French Open, where she teamed up with Timea Babos to win the title for a second time.

She finished the season on a high, reaching the semifinals of the Kremlin Cup, where she lost out to Belinda Bencic in straight sets after defeating Anastasija Sevastova, the No.6 seed, and No.2 seed Kiki Bertens.

Despite the success the pair enjoyed, Mladenovic announced the forthcoming end of their partnership on social media on Sunday.


“I am very disappointed about Sascha’s decision not to continue our relationship next season,” she said in a statement released in French and English. “I enjoyed our work, we had some great wins and I truly felt my game was on the rise again. I think that there was a lot more to achieve together but I can’t change his opinion & decision. On my side, I am proud of my year & progress and I will keep working hard and build strong to be even better in 2020.”

Mladenovic, who will likely be named in the France team to play Australia in the Fed Cup final, which takes place on November 9 and 10 in Perth, Australia, reached her career-best ranking of WTA World No.10 at the tail end of 2017 and is a two-time major quarterfinalist in singles.