Gisela Dulko, today: the reunion with the racket, commentator and how she lives her new stage

The stylized physique, the wide smile… It may have been almost ten years since he put the tennis in the trunk of days gone by, but quietly Gisela Dolko could give the profile of an active player. She is 36 years old, and there are still several players of that age walking around the planet of rackets. But almost a decade ago he decided to start a family, and he said goodbye to the WTA Tour with a letter that he hardly remembers today. Ten years and three children later, Dulko begins another stage.

There are some things that come back. A few weeks ago, he dusted off his old Tecnifibre racket for a benefit tournament alongside David Nalbandian. A few days ago he passed through Punta del Este, in Las Cárcavas, together with Mariano Zabaleta and Gastón Gaudio, his tour companions like a few years ago, also for an exhibition day. “They invited us to a clinic, in a very nice place. It was a lot of fun, we played with people and I was able to meet up with the boys too, because we’ve been seeing each other for a thousand years, and chatting and hanging out,” he says.

And if in one of those you feel good with tennis? The answer comes soon: “No, not at all. It is a stage that has already ended. They were many years without playing… . Now in December the exhibition for the David Foundation (Nalbandian) came up and I started to train a little. It wasn’t bad, the blows are not forgotten, I felt good… around running from one side to the other, yes. My tennis days are way behind me. When I retired, I turned the pageI was a mom very quickly. Since then, zero tennis, I never got bitten by the bug to play again. Around there a couple of times I played as a hobby, but nothing more”.

On these days, Dulko alternates her role as a mother with the return to ESPN as a commentator, during the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the season. Eleven years ago, in Melbourne, he won that Grand Slam in doubles, together with the Italian Flavia Pennetta, and reached number 1 in the world in that specialty. “With Flavia we have a relationship of friends, of sisters. We talk a lot; even she recently had her third child, almost like me. We follow each other’s footsteps, heh. We both have three children, it’s incredible. We talk a lot with her”, she comments on who was her great companion on the circuit.

Her role as an ESPN commentator reconnects her with the racket world. “I was away for many years, but a while ago I caught up with the players, going back to see. As I was a player, my role will be to distinguish the sensations of the players at certain times. I think the circuit is changing, it evolves, it improves. Strong players are seen, but the head, the mentality, is still essential as in all sports. I see that it evolves a lot, there are very young players, with tremendous physiques”, he reflects. Dulko, of course, has his preferences. “I like how (Garbiñe) Muguruza plays. Also Nadia Podoroska, I think she is very talented. It was a pity that he had such physical inconveniences; I hope he can recover well and come back, because he plays well and has a great future”.

Dulko was one of the Argentine tennis players who launched herself onto the circuit since she was very young –at 15 years old- and talks about the problems of the women’s branch in our country: “It always costs. But I don’t think there are no talents; on the contrary, it seems to me that there are girls with a lot of potential, who play well. But it is a difficult career, it is a solitary sport, which is started from a very young age, it is complicated for a woman. At the same time, I see that it is working hard to develop, and I hope that it can soon bear fruit. From my side, as long as I can contribute some of my knowledge, I will.”

A few weeks ago, Dulko separated from Fernando Gago, the Racing coach. A situation that, logically, changed her daily routine and focused even more on her three children, still young (Mateo, Antonella and Daniele, aged 8, 6 and 3, respectively). “If they know that I was a tennis player? Yes. They never saw me play, of course. But they know that I traveled a lot, that I trained a lot, that I did very well. That way they see the trophies and not much more than that. As they grow they will ask something else. They play sports, they take tennis classes, soccer, swimming, they do a little of everything. They are hyperactive, they are full all day.

“I spend a lot of time at home, dedicated to them one hundred percent. I have some projects ahead that I will evaluate and see what to do, but for now I am very excited and happy with this opportunity to be a commentator, which is very nice. We start with the Australian Open and then we will see”, he comments. He continues with his own venture, a clothing brand for boys (“Stai Zitta”).

“I’m happy. This 2022 started in a different way for me. It is a beautiful, positive stage, from now on, ”he says. Beyond being a top-level tennis player, with the consequent public recognition, and being married for more than ten years to a soccer player -now a manager- from a big club, Dulko always kept a low profile. Gago’s separation obviously led to an unusual exposure. “I felt uncomfortable, yes. It was something that was not good. But it is a subject that is already closed. It is clear that I always preferred to handle myself like this, with a low profile, ”he tells about a subject that he wants to leave behind. “I want to start many things, but today my children are my priority, and I will see what I can do. They are at the forefront of everything”, he concludes. In his own way, Dulko opens the doors to tennis and to a new stage.