Elena Rybakina hires Goran Ivanisevic as coach ahead of WTA Finals 2024

Elena Rybakina is in the purple group in the season-ending tournament.

Elena Rybakina announced at a press conference a day before the WTA Finals 2024 is to begin that Goran Ivanisevic will be her coach for the 2025 season. Rybakina, who is making a second appearance at the WTA Finals, named the 2001 Wimbledon winner and former coach of Novak Djokovic. She had ended her long-term partnership with coach Stefano Vukov before the 2024 US Open. 

Ivanisevic made three Wimbledon finals before finally lifting the trophy as a wild card in 2001. The Croatian began working with Djokovic in 2019. Under Ivanisevic, Djokovic bagged nine Grand Slam trophies, two ATP finals titles, and seven ATP 1000 wins. Ivanisevic and Djokovic parted ways in March.

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A post shared by Goran Ivanisevic (@goranivanisevicofficial)

The Croatian posted on Instagram, “Excited about coming back on tour. This time for some WTA action. Happy to join your team, Elena Rybakina.”

“I’m really looking forward to this partnership. I think he’s a great champion, and he has so much experience, and I’m looking forward to start” – Elena Rybakina talking to the press in Riyadh on the Ivanisevic appointment.

Rybakina and Ivanisevic will get down to business during the pre-season. The 25-year-old Kazakh has not played since the US Open and opted out of the Asian swing to rest her back ahead of the WTA Finals. She is the No. #5 seed at the inaugural Riyadh edition of the WTA Finals.

Rybakina is in the Purple Group in the company of top seed and WTA No. #1 Aryna Sabalenka. Jasmine Paolini (4) and Qinwen Zheng (7) complete the list of seeded players in the Purply Group.

Also Read: WTA Finals 2024: Live streaming, TV channel, where and how to watch?

The World No. #5 will take on Italian Jasmine Paolini in the first of her round-robin matches. Paolini won the doubles gold with Sara Errani at the Paris Olympics and is currently ranked No. #4 in the WTA rankings.

Iga Swiatek, the second seed, leads the Orange Group. Coco Gauff (3), Jessica Pegula (6) and Barbora Krejcikova (8) join Swiatek in the Orange Group as the other seeded players.

Rybakina maintained that she is in Riyadh without any lofty expectations. She is looking to have fun and gauge her level against the best players in the WTA. The Kazakh emphasised the need to stay healthy and make a fresh start in the 2025 season. 

Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka are some of the other big names on the WTA Tour with changes to their coaching line-up in 2024.

The elite eight in the WTA Rankings of the 2024 season kicked off their visit to Riyadh with a photo shoot in the Diriyah historic district on the outskirts of the capital.

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