BEIJING • Naomi Osaka revealed in her run to the China Open final that having her father as her new coach had been "nostalgic" with his repertoire of motivational catchphrases.
Yesterday, Haiti-born Leonard Francois again showed just why he "knows my game the most" as the Japanese plots a return to the summit of women's tennis.
Osaka fought back from a set down to beat Australian world No. 1 Ashleigh Barty 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 in the final in Beijing to secure her second title in the Asian swing after clinching the Pan Pacific Open in Japan last month.
The impact Francois has had since taking over as her third coach this year following the splits with Sascha Bajin and Jermaine Jenkins was also evident in the final.
After a shaky opening set, during which she made three double faults in one game, her dad put an arm around her as a form of motivation.
The pep talk clearly worked as Osaka broke back to take a 4-2 lead and did not concede a single break point in the second.
Her relentless tempo continued in the third with long baseline rallies forcing Barty into making mistakes, and she won eight points in a row to take a 5-2 lead, before wrapping up the encounter and levelling their head-to-head record at 2-2.
After breaking the French Open champion Barty three times and dropping serve only once in their 1hr 50min match, Osaka, who is now projected to rise to world No. 3 today ahead of Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, admitted she "felt like I had something to prove".
The former world No. 1, who has yet to lose a match since her fourth-round exit at the US Open and is on a 10-win streak, said: "Basically, I was telling myself to keep fighting even though my attitude was really trash - this is a final, I'm really privileged to be here in the first place, so keep fighting.
"I feel like I wasn't that calm here (at the tournament). I threw my racket, like, once every match. I really wanted to win here."
In Tokyo, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic yesterday won his maiden Japan Open title and the 76th of his career with a dominant 6-3, 6-2 success over John Millman in the final.
It was a triumphant return to the ATP Tour for the Serb, who had pulled out of the US Open in the fourth round owing to a shoulder injury. It was also the 10th time he had won a title on his tournament debut.
Djokovic needed only 69 minutes to dispatch Millman - who was playing in his maiden ATP 500 final - and the Australian and Wimbledon champion did not drop a set during the tournament.
"It was a fantastic week in every sense," the 16-time Grand Slam winner said. "I felt great on the court... (I) didn't drop a set, played really well, served great. Just overall, a great experience."
World No. 80 Millman was simply no match for Djokovic, who fired 23 winners, and the outclassed Australian later paid tribute to his opponent, saying "you're the type of person who's going to be remembered forever".
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS