Iga Swiatek is currently without a permanent coach, but a journalist has revealed who the Pole is working with temporarily.
Swiatek's last match was a quarterfinal defeat at the US Open to Jessica Pegula, who went on to finish runner-up to Aryna Sabalenka. The Pole subsequently withdrew from the WTA 1000 tournaments in Beijing and Wuhan.
Her official reason for not playing at the China Open in Beijing was personal, but Swiatek announced before the Wuhan Open that she and her longtime coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski, had split.
The parting was entirely amicable. Swiatek shared a heartfelt message thanking Wistorowski for helping her achieve so much during their three years together, including four of her five Grand Slams.
Swiatek's decision not to play during the Asian swing after such a significant change to her team was understandable, but that move has significantly impacted the race to end the year at No. 1 in the rankings.
Aryna Sabalenka is guaranteed to overtake Swiatek at No. 1 in the rankings the week after the Wuhan Open. The Belarusian only needed to reach the quarterfinal in Wuhan to ensure that, and she did it by defeating Yulia Putintseva.
This year's Australian Open and US Open champion got to the semifinal by overcoming Magdalena Frech, extending her points lead further. However, the race to end at No. 1 will be decided at the WTA Finals regardless of how far Sabalenka goes in Wuhan.
The importance of the WTA Finals in November means Swiatek training well and keeping herself sharp in the meantime is crucial, and journalist Marek Furjan revealed who she is working with to ensure that is the case.
Swiatek is being assisted by Poland's Billie Jean King Cup captain Dawid Celt, who previously worked alongside Wiktorowski to support the former Wimbledon runner-up Agnieszka Radwanska, Celt and Radwanska are now married.
Celt is happy to help his illustrious compatriot while she has no permanent coach, but Swiatek chose not to be in Poland's Billie Jean King Cup team for November's finals, probably dealing a fatal blow to Celt and his team.
Despite Celt's experience, Swiatek wants her next permanent coach to be non-Polish, meaning Celt is immediately ruled out. Ferjuan named some possible options for replacing Wiktorowski permanently.
The journalist says German Torben Beltz has a good chance. Beltz worked with Angelique Kerber during her superb 2016 season, when she won the 2016 Australian and US Open, was the runner-up at Wimbledon, and claimed an Olympic silver medal.
Other options include David Kotyza, who coached Karolina Muchova, Karolina Pliskova, Linda Noskova, and Raemon Sluiter, who split with Elina Svitolina after enjoying a successful time together.
Furjan also thinks Swiatek could hire a female coach. Andy Murray's former coach, Amelie Mauresmo, and Jelena Ostapenko's ex-coach, Anabel Medina Garrigues, are potential candidates.
Appointing another coach after such a long and successful period with Wiktorowski is undoubtedly challenging, meaning Swiatek's taking her time to make the right decision should not be surprising to fans.
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