Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejickova has shed light on her new coaching partnership after winning her opening match at the French Open.
The world No.15 confirmed she is now working with Jiri Novak, who reached a ranking high of No.5 in singles and is a two-time Grand Slam doubles finalist. 50-year-old Novak was the first player to play Roger Federer at Wimbledon and won seven ATP titles during his career. He has previously coached Maria Bouzková.
“We’ve been together for about a week, so we’re still getting to know each other,” Krejcikova told Czech media. “Jiri is very positive, just a cheerful guy. I can draw a lot of experience from him. I hope he gives me the peace that he has.”
Krejcikova, who is seeded 15th in this year’s French Open draw, began her campaign with a 7-6(4), 6-3, win over Germany’s Tatjana Maria to claim her first victory of the season. She missed the first part of this year due to a back injury with Paris being only the second tournament she is playing in her comeback. Earlier this month, she played in Strasbourg where she was beaten in the first round by Magda Linette.
“The match was very difficult,” Krejcikova said of beating Maria.
“I endured difficult moments when the lead was changing sides. Tatjana doesn’t have a completely standard style, so it was a very difficult match for the first round.”
“That match definitely helped me, at least it helped me find out a little bit about my level. For going on the court after such a break, I played decently.” She added.
Now she has a win under her belt, Krejcikova is staying grounded about her expectations over the coming weeks. She won the French Open back in 2021 when she beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to win the title. Overall, she has won eight titles on the WTA Tour.
“Since I don’t really know what to expect from myself, I’m taking it match by match. I know I have to work hard for every ball, and then maybe the reward will come,” she concluded.
Krejcikova will next play Veronika Kudermetova in Paris.
