Sascha Bajin named inaugural WTA Coach of the Year

The WTA announced a handful of year-end awards on Monday, and Sascha Bajin, rookie coach of Naomi Osaka, was named the tour's first Coach of the Year, voted by members of the WTA Coach Program.

Aahhhh! I’m speechless and turning a bit red. Such an honor. 🙏🏽 It wouldn’t have happened without my team around me who did amazing work this whole year and Naomi who had the biggest part in all this. Easy to be a good coach when you have a great student. Thanks to you all ❤️ https://t.co/2Qryd1xeLS
— sascha Bajin (@BigSascha) December 10, 2018

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Adding shape to her ball and improving her mindset, Bajin helped Osaka get from world No. 68 to No. 5 in 2018, with titles in Indian Wells and at the US Open.

The award also recognizes Bajin's role as an ambassador for tennis. He's considered Osaka's secret weapon this year:

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Petra Kvitova, meanwhile, was voted by her fellow players to receive the Karen Krantzcke Sportsmanship Award. Winning it an astonishing six years in a row, she's rivaled only by Roger Federer, whose streak of seven Sportsmanship Awards was just broken by Rafael Nadal.

Thanks so much to my fellow @WTA players for voting for me 🤗

It's an honour to win the Karen Krantzcke Sportsmanship Award for the 7th time!

Miss you guys - look forward to seeing you in January 😘 pic.twitter.com/nnl2CyOEJf
— Petra Kvitova (@Petra_Kvitova) December 10, 2018

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And Bethanie Mattek-Sands was given the Peachy Kellmeyer Player Service Award.

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A post shared by Bethanie Mattek-Sands (@matteksands)

There were also Tournament of the Year Awards for the best tour event at each level. The winners were Indian Wells (Premier Mandatory), Rome (Premier 5), St. Petersburg (Premier) and Hong Kong (International).