By Marcelo Solari
He was very close to delivering a major blow. Of those that are remembered and cause an impact. He was very close to crowning his great tournament with something as shocking as a junior Grand Slam title. However, the Mar del Plata Solana Sierra became the best news for Argentine tennis in the recent edition of the US Open.
She reached the women’s singles semifinals (she lost to who would later become the champion), and she still enjoys everything she did in the New York competition intimately.
Still fulfilling the four days of mandatory isolation in the Buenos Aires town of Canning, the place she chose to settle and train for a year, with the help of the Tennium agency, and before traveling to rest in Mar del Plata, the tennis player revived his unforgettable tournament with LA CAPITAL:
-You played a near perfect tournament in New York. Were you expecting it or were you somehow surprised?
-I honestly didn’t expect to get that far, but before the tournament I was really looking forward to playing it. It was the tournament that he had most dreamed of being able to play. I prepared the matches well, I played very well and the results that allowed me to advance to the semifinals were given.
-You came across a player of the same age (17 years old) but with enough experience in the WTA and who also later won the tournament …
-The truth is that Robin Montgomery plays very well. She is already inserted in the WTA circuit and is among the best juniors in the world.
-Anyway, you demanded it thoroughly and they reached the third set …
-Yes, I won the first set and I think I played my best tennis there. Very good tactically, too. In the second I began to doubt. To think a lot, to get a little out of my head. I tried to go back, I think I partly succeeded and tried to do everything possible but in the end she surpassed me (N.R .: it was 2-6, 6-3 and 6-4 for the American).
-Beyond the defeat and the fact that you beat tough opponents, was that the most difficult game?
-All the games were very difficult. From the first round. I faced very good players, I won two games 7-6 in the third set (against the British Matilda Mutavdzic, in the second round, and against the American Elvina Kalieva, in the quarterfinals). It was difficult to move forward and somehow that indicates that I did things quite well.
-Do you think it was your best tournament?
– Without a doubt, yes. For all that it means to reach the semifinals in a Grand Slam and because I played very good games.
-You had been to Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Was New York special?
-Yes, especially because in the other two tournaments, there was no public. Here yes, crazy. So many people hanging around and in the stands. Even the junior games were full. It was great.
– Playing in front of so many people was also a test for you?
-Can be. But I quite like it. You could say that that helped me too.
-Did you have contact with professional stars?
-Yes, yes, we saw them all the time, incredible. We were also able to watch various games.
-How do you define what Emma Raducanu and Leylah Fernandez did, the finalists who are barely older than you?
-It was impressive what they achieved. They played at a very high level, with a giant mentality and became inescapable references for many young tennis players.
-What does your long-time coach, Bettina Fulco, say about all this?
-He sent me messages and congratulated me throughout the tournament. I was very happy. She always wishes me the best and I also wish the best for her. We love eachother so much. But settling near Buenos Aires was the best for my career.
-Did a sponsor approach you with this great performance of yours at Flushing Meadows?
-Not yet. That is lacking. The good thing is that they ratified my wild-card (invitation) for the WTA tournament in Argentina, in November.
-How is your schedule now?
-I am going to rest for a week and then I will have two weeks of training before playing W25 tournaments in Peru and Brazil, before the WTA.
