Romanian Halep splits with coach Fissette

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romanian world number four Simona Halep has split with her Belgian coach Wim Fissette, she announced on Thursday. "My collaboration with Wim Fissette will come to an end, following a mutual agreement," the 23-year-old wrote on her Facebook page. "It was a good and beautiful year. I want to thank him and wish him good luck in the future." The announcement came a week after Halep was beaten by world number one Serena Williams in the WTA championship final in Singapore. Halep, who has won eight WTA titles in the last two years, began working with Fissette, who previously coached Kim Clijsters and Sabine Lisicki, in January after splitting with Adrian Marcu. In 2014, Halep became the highest ranked Romanian in WTA history after reaching the French Open final, losing to Maria Sharapova in three sets, and winning the WTA titles in Doha and Bucharest. Local media reported that Romanian tennis promoter Ion Tiriac, an extravagantly moustachioed former player who became a billionaire businessman, is helping Halep to find another coach for next season. (Reporting by Angel Krasimirov; Editing by Ken Ferris)