Tennis Update: Fernando Verdasco hoping for a strong start in 2011
Wonderful news folks, the wait is finally over. With the New Year, comes the start of a new ATP season. One of the triad kicking off the new season is the Brisbane International, where three of the Top 10, along with twenty-nine
other professionals, will start their 2011 run. The event will start from the 2nd and end on the 9th of January, at Queensland Tennis Centre in Brisbane, Australia.
One of these top players is the Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. He was a finalist at the event after having run the complete course in 2009. However, losing to Radek Stepanek, he failed to clinch the title. Verdasco believes this is
an excellent opportunity to prepare for the Australian Open and is excited to start the season at Brisbane. Although a 2009 finalist, Verdasco did not appear in the 2010 edition of the event.
Excited about his return to the event, Verdasco said, “It’s always important when you are starting a new season to try and start the best as possible. I think that the performance I did two years ago [at the Australian Open] was
partly due to the level I played here in Brisbane and that’s one of the reasons I decided to come here again, to try and get to that level of confidence in my game.”
Verdasco has been practicing intensively for the event, playing at Miami and Las Vegas in the preseason. Seeded third in the main draw, Verdasco drew against Benjamin Becker in the first round. Sharing the bottom half of the draw
with defending champion Andy Roddick, Verdasco hopes his practice will pay off and he will get the right stepping-stone for a better 2011.
Recognizing the competition, Verdasco said, “There are many good players in this tournament and it’s going to be very tough not just to win, but even to get to the finals again. But, I’m feeling good and I just came here to try
and do my best and try to win the tournament.”
Ranked nine in the world, Verdasco finished last season with an impressive 43-22 win loss mark, coupled with two title wins. Winning at home, Verdasco won the title at Barcelona. He also managed to win the crown at San Jose. In
addition, he also put in two final appearances in the season, at Nice and the Monte Carlo Masters, meeting compatriot and world number one Rafael Nadal in the latter.
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