Goran Ivanisevic says he needed “something different” after working with Novak Djokovic, and when Elena Rybakina contacted him, he felt it was a perfect opportunity for him to get back into the business because it meant a switch to the WTA Tour but also working with someone he thinks very highly of.
After a mysterious split with long-time coach Stefano Vukov and not playing since the US Open, the Kazakh spoke with reporters for the first time in two months when she arrived in Riyadh for her pre-tournament presser. And after calling fake news on claims that she was verbally abused by Vukov, the 25-year-old also shared to reporters that she hired Ivanisevic but that their collaboration would officially start in the preseason.
Previously, Ivanisevic ended his extremely successful six-year partnership with Djokovic in late March.
“When we spoke back in April (after the split with Novak), I told you that I would take a longer break, and secondly – that I won’t take a job that doesn’t make me curious or doesn’t represent a challenge. After Novak, it’s really hard to coach anyone, so I needed something completely different. When you’re the coach of the greatest player of all time, you just need something new. So the choice was some young player or something…
