4-time main champion Naomi Osaka eased into the second spherical of the WTA 1000 China Open on Wednesday, with Serena Williams’ former coach Patrick Mouratoglou sitting courtside.
The previous world No. 1, now ranked 73rd, defeated Lucia Bronzetti of Italy 6-3, 6-2 and subsequent faces twenty first seed Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan.
The 26-year-old Osaka mentioned earlier this month she was splitting with Belgian coach Wim Fissette.
There was no official announcement of a tie-up with the famend French coach Mouratoglou, however he was pictured arriving in Beijing with Osaka.
They had been additionally seen working towards within the Chinese language capital forward of her first-round match in opposition to the 77th-ranked Bronzetti.
Fissette had two stints teaching Osaka, from 2019 to the summer time of 2022 and once more after they reunited final yr as Osaka launched her return to tennis after the start of her daughter Shai in July 2023.
Osaka has struggled to place collectively victories since she returned to the WTA Tour in January.
She bowed out within the second spherical of the latest U.S. Open and her greatest outcomes since returning to motion have been two quarterfinal appearances.
Osaka gained the China Open in 2019.