Tennis Special Report: “I want to get back into the top 10 and win another Slam” - Ana Ivanovic
Serbian tennis pro and former World Number 1 Ana Ivanovic has improved drastically in 2010, making up for a forgettable 2009 season in which she was unable to win a single title on the WTA Tour; on the contrary, she slipped to World Number 22. This was the
first time in five years that she finished the year outside the world’s top twenty.
Although she has climbed back up the WTA rankings, she seems to be determined to push herself further. Safely ensconced in the World’s top 20 at Number 17, Ivanovic is more focused on winning another Majors event than reclaiming the World Number 1 position.
The player says, “I want to get back into the top 10 and win another Slam. I was really fortunate in my career to have so far already won a Grand Slam and reach Number 1 position, but a Grand Slam is something you never forget, and if I had to choose
I would always choose a Grand Slam over the Number 1 ranking.”
This year she has benefited greatly from a change of team and an overall improvement in her confidence and fitness. Her new coach has also improved her serve; a noticeable change now that she hits the ball more cleanly. Her footwork is also more refined
and she can, in her own words, “stay longer in rallies and retrieve more balls.” The improvement in her self-confidence is also obvious; she says about her improved game, “Obviously it’s always going to give you confidence and get you through
tough matches.”
Her newfound determination and efforts paid off in the second half of the year, where Ivanovic took away titles at Linz and Bali to up her WTA tour wins to a tally of 10. As far as Grand Slams go, she realizes the monumental challenge facing her in 2011.
She was unable to move past the fourth round of a Grand Slam event for the last two years. Her initial goal, therefore, is to make it past the first week of one of the prestigious events.
She says, “I feel good about my game and my fitness at the moment but I just don't want to get too excited about the possibility of how far I can get, and it's very important to just set realistic goals and, you know, aim for the second week and then
take it day by day.”
Ana Ivanovic will kick off 2010 with her childhood friend, Novak Djokovic. The two players will team up for the first time since 2006 for the Hopman Cup next week. When asked about her partnership with her compatriot, she says, “He is a joker, he's a
very nice guy. I've known him since before we started playing tennis so we've been friends for a very long time. It's always enjoyable to catch up.”
While Ivanovic calls the Hopman Cup a good forum to estimate the prowess of rivals at the start of a season, she has also been focusing on the little luxuries offered by Perth. So far, she has visited beaches such as Cottesloe, Port Beach, Hillarys and Scarborough;
however, she will soon be training exclusively for the Hopman Cup. Top seed Serbia will begin their campaign on Sunday, with Kazakhstan as their opponent.
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