Daniela Hantuchova has revealed the reasons behind her decision to split with Sussex coach Nigel Sears.

She will play next week's Hastings Direct International Championships at Eastbourne for the first time without the man who has been the guiding hand behind much of her bumpy ride on the WTA Tour for the past five years.

Hantuchova, a beaten finalist at Devonshire Park two years ago, believes the time was right to go their separate ways.

She said: "Obviously it was a hard decision. Nigel helped me very much. We worked together for quite a while and it was great. He taught me so much and I am grateful.

"But everything has its course. I just knew it was time to change and bring something new to my game."

She will have no problem playing in Sears' home county so soon after the break-up.

Hantuchova said: "I won't look on it as being a weird situation. The place is still the same, the courts will be the same and hopefully the fans will be the same too.

"I always look forward to Eastbourne because they are always nice to me.

"The support is fantastic and I'm sure it will be this year too. I can't wait."

The professional relationship between Hantuchova and Sears, who is based at Brighton Health and Racquets Club, Falmer, has always been rocky.

They parted once before in 2003 with the coach citing off-court problems.

He walked out during the French Open that year, dismayed at her attitude on court during a match against Ashley Harkleroad.

Hantuchova's weight loss was the subject of a media frenzy and there were claims she was suffering from an eating disorder.

They reunited the following year and Hantuchova went close to beating Svetlana Kuznetsova in the Hastings Direct International Championship final.

She retained her consistency last year with runs to the third round of every Grand Slam and started 2006 with a bang, knocking out Serena Williams on her way to the last 16 of the Australian Open.

But results tailed off, with a series of early exits, before she and Sears mutually agreed to part.

She said: "It was purely a professional decision. We've always got on well and will continue to do so."

Hantuchova, now world-ranked 18, has turned to Spanish coach Angel Gimenez after practising with him at the Emilio Sanchez Academy in Spain.

She said: "We will have to see how things go.

"He was with me at the French Open but that was only the second tournament we have worked together at."

The 23-year-old burst on the scene in 2003 and was world-ranked No. 5 after making the quarter-finals of Wimbledon, the US Open and Australian Open. But Hantuchova believes she is now in the form of her life.

Her run to the last 16 of the French Open, where she lost to semi-finalist Kim Clijsters, and the final of the women's doubles with Ai Sugiyama, underlines her point.

But she wants to tweak her game even more and shed her nearly girl tag - Hantuchova has won just one tour singles title in her seven years as a professional.

And with Gimenez, she hopes to complete the transition.

She said: "I'm feeling really good. I'm starting to do the right things on court. I'm trying to be a bit smarter, doing my best in every singles match and will see how far I can get.

"I am a much more accomplished player than when I got to No. 5.

"I know what I'm doing with my shot selection and what to do at certain times in the match. I have a better idea than in 2003.

"Then it was much easier. No one knew me. I just went for my shots. I was completely free. I think I am a much better player now."

Hantuchova says her main inspiration comes from what she promised herself as a young girl.

She said: "I set myself goals when I was six. I still haven't achieved them and they keep me going. Motivation is never a problem for me."

Hantuchova is coy about divulging the details of those targets but they are sure to include becoming world No. 1 and a Grand Slam champion. Time will tell if she can achieve them without Sears.

In the meantime, her former coach intends to "pop in" to Eastbourne next week.

If they meet she expects the conversation to be cordial and the World Cup in Germany is sure to be high on the agenda.

She said: "Nigel is a big football fan. I'm more into hockey but, like Nigel, will be supporting the England team. Why not? They have some cute guys, that's for sure, like David Beckham."

So what about Hantuchova to win Eastbourne this year and England for World Cup glory?

She and Sven Goran Eriksson's men are both up against the greatest opponents on the globe.

But the multi-lingual tennis ace, with French Open champion Justine Henin-Hardenne, world No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo and defending championship Clijsters in a star-studded Devonshire Park draw, hopes a glorious double can be completed.