After a frustrating six months which saw her fall from the cusp of the world's top 100 to 153 in the world, Katie O'Brien is back on form and very close to joining Anne Keothavong in the promised land. As she sets her sights on a good grasscourt season, Katie talks about why she has improved, on almost being in the top 100 and why the women on tour are useless at socialising.
On her terrific year so far: I’ve been playing really well and in general I’ve had a really good year so I’m really looking forward to the upcoming tournaments.
On playing on clay: I’m much more comfortable on it than I used to be. A lot of Brits don’t particularly like the clay but I don’t mind it. The French is harder to qualify for than the other Slams because of the clay.
On hopefully getting automatic qualification for Wimbledon: I didn’t expect that, to be honest. I started the year just wanting to turn over a new leaf and everything came together really well. It would be a huge bonus if I can get in at Wimbledon off my ranking because I’ve had wildcards the last five years, so it would be nice to actually to get there on my own rights for a change.
On why she has improved so much: In December I trained really hard and it’s a combination of everything. I tried to take a different mental approach to my tennis and enjoy it more and be more positive. I’ve scheduled my year a lot better too. I’ve incorporated a lot more training weeks back at Roehampton, so that’s made sure I’ve gone into every tournament giving myself the best chance possible because I’m in the best frame of mind and the best possible shape.
On almost breaking into the top 100 last year: Last year was slightly different because I had a high ranking because of my two big results from Wimbledon and Eastbourne and I didn’t really have much else. That maybe happened a little bit too early because I wasn’t ready mentally to make that breakthrough. So now I’m in a stronger position because I don’t really have many points to defend for the rest of the year. And I’m mentally and physically better-equipped now and a much better player.
On Anne Keothavong breaking into the top 100: It has taken the pressure off. Anne breaking through gave us all a lot more belief. We’re quite a tight-nit group, we all train together and we’ve seen that it’s possible that, with hard work, you can do it. We are competitive with each other but it’s healthy competition.
On the loneliness of the tour: It can be a little bit soul-destroying at times. It is such a lonely sport. It’s not like rugby or football when you’ve always got good banter going on and the support of a lot of people around you. A lot of the time I am travelling on my own but on the men’s side, I think they deal with it a bit better. The men socialise a lot better than the women. The women tend to keep themselves to themselves. A lot of them are quite young. It’s difficult to maintain any kind of normal social life but you have to accept that to a certain extent and deal with it as best you can. When we’re back in London, we try to live as normally as we can.
On who to keep an eye on in the future: It’s tough to say because there are so many up-and-coming juniors at the moment. But Laura is so good. She’s certainly a prospect to watch out for in the next few years. She’s a lot more mature than many people of her age.
On her love for Hull City: I don’t get to see many games because I’m always travelling so much but I do follow the results. And I managed to get to Wembley last year for the play-offs. That was amazing. The Hull Daily Mail actually called me last week to ask me to give a message of support to the team ahead of their final game. It would be great for the city if I could do well because sport’s really big in Hull.
Apart from losing that opening service game, Sunday's opener was pretty straightforward for Andy Murray, who dealt with experienced clay-courter Juan Ignacio Chela impressively. The draw looks Ok-ish now, with potential last-8 opponent Gilles Simon desperately out of form at the moment. If Andy can reach the last four, it would be a fantastic achievement. Getting past Rafa on clay, however, would be nothing short of a little miracle...still, you never know.
So, fingers crossed, some of this stuff might come to pass in the next fortnight. I reckon 5 out of 8 is respectable, right?
Short blog this week but might be back with an extra one from Paris. Keep checking the Mail website for plenty of stories and interviews.