"This period has been very important in my journey" - Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard splits from long-term coach Emmanuel Planque

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard will be taking the next step in his tennis career after splitting with long term coach Emmanuel Planque.

The 22-year-old has known nothing else on the ATP Tour without Planque who had been coaching him for the last four years, overseeing the tall Frenchman's progress up the order. He has already enjoyed a fair amount of success, rising from world number 587th in the world back in 2021 when Planque took over to the heights that he has now achieved. He won his only two ATP titles back in 2024 at the Lyon Open and Swiss Indoors, showing his credentials as a very good tennis player.

His big serves allowed him to be a dominant force but his problems come in other parts of his game, limiting his ceiling. After breaking into the top 30 around this time last year, he now languishes down in 55th ahead of him competing in the ABN AMRO Open.

He unveiled the news on his Instagram, letting his fans know of the news with a touching and heartfelt message. After four years of working together, my collaboration with Emmanuel Planque has come to an end," he wrote. " Manu, thank you for the work you've done and your total commitment, which have allowed me to grow, not only as a tennis player, but also as a person. This period has been very important in my journey."

Mpetshi-Perricard has not begun the year with flying colours. He reached a quarter-final in the ASB Classic but would succumb to defeat against Jakub Mensik, who went on to lift the title. Before that he lost in the second round of the Brisbane International to Aleksandar Kovacevic in three sets.

After his trip to Auckland, he has yet to re-enter the winning enclosure. He did well to claw back a two-set deficit to Sebastian Baez in the first round of the Australian Open but was powerless in preventing the Argentine from taking the final set and dumping him out. What followed was a very unfortunate but utterly bizarre incident in the Open Occitanie. Back on French soil, he was taking on fellow countryman Arthur Gea in the first match when he deflected the ball into his eye when attempting a volley. He would retire after this and the opportunity to get back on form was halted for another week.

He will be making the trip to Rotterdam with home hero Tallon Griekspoor his opening task. He will have to complete this without Planque. The news was released two days before he opens his ABN AMRO Open account on Tuesday February 10. There is no update on who Mpetshi Perricard will take on as his new righthand man, but it is a decision which will take time and some thought as he looks to continue without Planque for the first time.

As for Planque, he has been increasingly linked to 16-year-old talent Moise Kouame who made his ATP debut in the Open Occitanie, taking a set off Kovacevic but would end up losing. Planque was present at his qualifying matches for the event, ramping up the rumours that he could be switching French players with France's next big talent already in the pipeline.