What you need to know:
Maria Sakkari has played 4 tournaments in Mexico and her title at the Guadalajara Open 2023 made her the first Greek tennis player to win a WTA 1000 tournament
Maria Sakkari She was born in Athens, Greece, on July 25, 1995. However, only a few tournaments in Mexico were enough for the fans to adopt her. She is the favorite Greek of our country and will be again in Mexico in the Plaza de Toros.
She won her first WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara / Photo: Getty
Sakkari will participate in Tennisfest 2023, in an exhibition match against Caroline Wozniacki. Yes, we are talking about the same event where we will have the participation of Carlos Alcaraz in his first visit to our country.
Who is Maria Sakkari?
That said, born in Greece in 1995, Maria Sakkari is the most beloved Greek tennis player in Mexico. Their participations in the Guadalajara Open and the WTA Finals that have been held in Mexican territory were enough to win the hearts of Mexican fans.
The life of Maria Sakkari has always been linked to sport. Her career began when she was just 6 years old, as His mother was also a tennis player and his father was a soccer player.
Foto: Getty
She soon became one of the best junior players in Greece, to the point of making the Greek Fed Cup team in 2012, at the age of 17. Individually, his first great achievement came when he won the European Under-18 championship and then the World Cup in the same category..
His debut in a Grand Slam came in 2015 and at none other than the US Open. She has won two WTA titles: the first in 2019 in Rabat, Morocco, and the second at the Guadalajara Open that took place in 2023. Her best position in the WTA ranking was reached in March 2022, when reached No. 3 in the world.
We tell you who Maria Sakkari is / Photo: Getty
Maria Sakkari’s time in Mexico
Before that victory, Maria Sakkari had already come to Mexico in previous years. First in 2021 to the WTA Finals in Guadalajara, where she won over the fans and was the great favorite. She fell in the semi-finals, but was named uncrowned champion ever since.
She returned to Mexico for the first edition of the WTA 1000 Guadalajara Open, where she reached the finalHer defeat once again marked the Guadalajara fans who dreamed of her being crowned in her new home.
Sakkari won her first WTA 1000 title in Guadalajara / Photo: Getty
But the third time was the charm. Maria Sakkari returned to the Guadalajara Open in 2023 and now there was no one to stop her. The Greek defeated the American Caroline Dolehide in the final, with which she managed to win five matches in a row for the first time in her entire career.
It also represented her first WTA 1000 title. (Morocco was a WTA 250 tournament), and with that it became the first Greek tennis player to win a 1000th tournament in history.
“Last year I said that here it feels like being in a big family”said about playing in Mexico after winning the GDL Open.
Sakkari, champion of the GDL Open 2023 / Photo: Getty
Sadly, her last experience in Mexico before Tennisfest 2023 was at the WTA Finals held in Cancun and it did not go well at all. They lost their three group stage matches, being eliminated in the first round.
Sakkari was at the WTA Finals in Cancun / Photo: Getty
Always proud to take care of your mental health
Curiously, Reaching her best position in the WTA rankings was also a very dark moment in Maria Sakkari’s life. Greece is not a country used to having athletes at the top, so they put a lot of expectations when someone starts to stand out.
Sakkari came to feel that she had to win absolutely all her matches because in Greece she had become a heroone that could not fail to have the hopes of an entire country on its shoulders.
“It was a new situation for me this year because, obviously, coming from a country that is very small, you have all the expectations, all the eyes on you.”“he said, according to words reported by ESPN.
Maria Sakkari has fought for her mental health / Photo: Getty
“He started having panic attacks and withdrew from his entire game, completely forgot how he was supposed to play, withdrew from his routines, distanced himself from everyone. She didn’t want to get out of bed“her coach told about that period of the Greek tennis player.
That is why although he had stopped going to his psychologist, he did so again and does not hesitate to remember that it was the best decision. Sakkari overcame that bad moment with the help of her psychologist and everyone who can remembers the importance of taking care of mental health to be physically well.
“Going back to my psychologist I think was probably the best decision I have ever made.”“.
Maria Sakkari
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2023-11-29 03:05:08
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