Better late than never though Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova She is not yet 30. The truth is that no one expected to see the Russian in a Grand Slam final, especially considering the amount of talent that lives on the circuit right now. But life always surprises you and, when you think your moment is over, it comes Roland Garros 2021 to remind you that you are still on time, that there is a train waiting for you at the station. Based on work, faith and a psychological improvement, Pavs has been able to access the title fight in Paris. Whatever happens on Saturday, your tournament will have been a resounding success.
A personal challenge
“I have shown myself that I can make it to a Grand Slam. Only me, no one else. I’ve seen myself serving to win the game, serving well, totally focused, so now I’m here. I know what I have to do from now on ”.
Discreet celebration after victory
“At that moment I did what I felt, I am not that type of player who celebrates too much, I am not one of those who does something for the simple fact of having to do it. What I do I do by nature, whatever I feel at the time, so that’s why I didn’t celebrate it so much. It doesn’t mean anything either, since inside I can’t be happier. It’s my first big final, so it has nothing to do with my rival ”.
First final after 53 Grand Slam tournaments
“Thank you for telling me this information, I really hadn’t read any news, I don’t follow the statistics, I had no idea. It’s good to know, I’m getting together with those big names (Schiavone, Vinci) and joining the club, but I’d love to keep moving forward and take another step, I’m still focused and I feel like I can do even better. At least I want to try, it’s what I want. I’m trying to absorb this and enjoy it as much as possible, it’s a very special moment. It has been a long road, I don’t know why it took so long for this moment to arrive, I just made my own way, but each one has its own ways ”.
The dream of lifting a great title
“You always dream of things like that, as a professional tennis player I think it’s the only goal we have in mind, that’s why we play tennis. For us that is the greatest achievement you can achieve in your career, for that you keep playing. I think about it all the time, I’ve been thinking about it since I was a junior, since I was a child, since I started playing tennis ”.
Mental battle against Zidansek
“It was a difficult challenge, you think you are in an advantageous position for having a better ranking, or whatever. But it was the first semi-final for both of them, so the mental factor was essential, it sure played an important role. In the end, all I tried was to stay in the game and at each point, I had my tactics, I knew what I had to do, pure discipline and tactical work. I didn’t feel very good playing today either, in fact, I was a bit negative with myself because I thought I would play better. He didn’t feel like he was playing well, that’s all, so he wasn’t enjoying it. The ultimate goal was to win, so I stayed there at every point doing what I had to do. “
Routine until Saturday
“I’m going to take it easy, do my routines, train a bit and prepare for my next game. Right now I also want to enjoy a little more with my friends and my team, that will help me to recover. Unfortunately I don’t have a doubles match tomorrow because we lost yesterday, it was a great three-set match, which also took a lot of energy out of me. I wanted to continue playing doubles, it’s something I like, it generates certain routines for me and I could warm up with Elena, it’s fun. Now what I have to do is concentrate as hard as possible for the last game I have left “
The award for many years of irregularity
“I have always had doubts. Let’s say I could beat many players, some of them in the top 10 in the world, I have even been able to reach several Grand Slam quarterfinals. I was close to the semi-finals a couple of times, but it never happened, I always had ups and downs in terms of results. But I always felt that I was there, that I could beat them, I just lacked consistency, something that was difficult to deal with. Maybe I had a lot of expectations that I couldn’t deal with. “
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