Samantha Stosur confident for the Australian Open campaign – Tennis News
27-year-old Aussie veteran, Samantha Stosur has claimed that she is ready to take the huge pressure upon her shoulders in her Australian Open campaign, starting next month. Currently rated at number six in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) world rankings, Stosur bagged her first Grand Slam championship title this year at the US Open and hopes to carry forward her winning impetus in the next year’s opening Grand Slam event at home.
Stosur has never gone past the fourth round at the Australian Open in nine attempts but she believes she will tackle the huge pressure of competing at the Grand Slam event in front of her home crowd this time round. The Aussie thinks that her US Open victory has added another layer to her confidence and she will step on the hard courts of Melbourne next season for bagging the Major title at home.
“I think the Aussie Open I can get a good result, I don't think there's any reason why I can't,” said Stosur, “It's nothing to do with the court, or the conditions or anything like that, I think it's just been one of those things...the last two years I've obviously had very good results at the French and the US and now hopefully I can do that here in Australia.”
Stosur finished the 2011 WTA season with a 45-23 winning record, with one Grand Slam championship title to her name. Her this year’s voyage at the Australian Open lasted till the third round, where she was outplayed by the Wimbledon champion, Petra Kvitova, in straight sets, 7-6(5), 6-3, to have another agonizing finish in front of her home crowd.
The Australian also had a third round exit at the French Open, losing to then 51st ranked Gisela Dulko in three sets. She was dumped in her opening match at the Wimbledon Championships before she beat all the odds to clinch the last Grand Slam title of the season, the US Open. She stunned the former world number one and the hot favourite, Serena Williams of the United States, in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3, to take the prestigious title for the first time in her career.
Stosur’s coach, David Taylor, is very hopeful for the Aussie to perform well at the Grand Slam Down Under next month and cited that she is fully prepared for it.
“I think Sam has been criticized probably for not living up to the big moments sometimes, but she's really erased that now,” Taylor said.
The Australian expressed that she would love to climb to the top of the women’s rankings but it's not her primary goal at present.
Tags: