British No.1 Johanna Konta has ended her collaboration with coach Wim Fissette after working together for 10 months.
The announcement followed a series of disappointing results experienced by the world No.10. Since reaching the quarterfinals at the Cincinnati Open in August, Konta has failed to win a match in four consecutive tournaments. Her most recent loss was in Beijing when she only managed to win three games against Romania’s Monica Niculescu.
In a statement Konta confirmed that the ending of her partnership with Fisette was ‘amicable.’ The 37-year-old Belgian has previously worked with a series of high profile players on the women’s tour. Prior to Konta, he guided Kim Clijsters to two grand slam titles, mentored Victoria Azarenka and spent a brief spell with Simona Halep.
“After careful thought and discussion, Wim Fissette and I have mutually decided to end our working relationship,” said Konta.
“Things ended very amicably and I wish Wim all the best. We’ve achieved a lot together and I want to thank him for all his patience, hard work and expertise.
“I will be working with my team over the coming weeks to find the right way forward for me and my tennis. The goal is to get a new coach or coaches in place as soon as possible but the focus will be on making the right decision rather than a quick decision.”
Thank you to you for being a great coach and most importantly a great person to work with this season. Wishing you all the best as well! https://t.co/Vm0nmZjT1n
— Johanna Konta (@JoKonta91) 18 October 2017
Despite the brief 10-month stint, Konta enjoyed success on the tour with Fissette. At the start of the year she won the Sydney International without dropping a set in the tournament. Three months later she won her biggest title to date at the Miami Open, defeating Caroline Wozniacki in the final. In the grand slams, Konta’s best performance was reaching the semifinals at Wimbledon for the first time.
End of play
Coinciding with her surprise announcement, Konta also confirmed that she will not play again on the tour this season. The 26-year-old pulled out of this week’s Kremlin cup due to a foot injury. As a result of the setback, she narrowly missed out on a place in the WTA Finals. France’s Caroline Garcia secured the eighth and final spot.
“My foot is improving but it is still advisable to rest it further so unfortunately I will not be travelling to Singapore or to the WTA Elite Trophy (a tournament for the eighth ranked outside the top eight in the world) in Zhuhai,” explained Konta.
Konta closes out 2017 with a win-loss record of 40-18. Out of those 40, 33 of the wins occurred before the start of Wimbledon.
