Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Pliskpova has turned to the guidance of a former top doubles player at the US Open after her coach was unable to enter the country.
The world No.4 has been working alongside Sascha Bajin, who is the former coach of Naomi Osaka and hitting partner of Serena Williams, since the end of the last season. However, the Czech has suffered a blow to her preparations for the final Grand Slam of the season. In a statement published on her website, it has been confirmed Bajin has not been granted entry into America after residing in the country ‘longer than he had’ during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“Sascha stayed in the US longer than he had during the covid pandemic last year. He has a house in Florida and he didn’t want to travel that much. This year, however, he still did not receive a visa because of that. We tried to work intensively on it, but to this day we have not been able to solve it,“ Pliskova’s manager and husband Michal Hrdlička said in a statement.
Replacing Bajin in Pliskova’s team on a temporary basis will be fellow Czech Leos Friedl who is a former top 20 doubles player that won the 2001 Wimbledon mixed doubles title with Daniela Hantuchova. Friedl is the current coach of Filip Polášek who is the eighth seed in the men’s doubles tournament at the US Open.
“We have agreed to help out in the US tournaments, now we have a joint US Open. I really thank him, because he had to cancel his planned family program,” Hrdlička commented.
So far this season the 29-year-old has achieved a win-loss record of 28-15 but is yet to win a title. Although she has reached the final of two WTA 1000 events in Rome and Toronto, as well as Wimbledon.
Pliskova is also a former finalist at the US Open after finishing runner-up to Angelique Kerber back in 2016. She will open up her campaign in this year’s draw against wildcard Caty McNally.
