Yesterday, the organizers delayed the release of the draws until late as they had to finalize the order of play for the current week’s tournament. But finally, the good news arrived—Stefi is in the main draw for this week! A solid step forward, and it has brought a boost of excitement to the team.
This morning, like the previous days, the temperature was below 0°C, with a biting wind making tennis practice particularly challenging. With the first round of qualifications underway, there were fewer courts available for practice. So, we decided to focus the morning on physical training in the gym, along with some indoor speed and reaction exercises to sharpen Stefi’s movement.
We briefly tried to watch some of the matches, but it was so cold outside that we quickly decided to retreat indoors. Instead, we had a long discussion about mental training, exploring strategies that could help Stefi regain her momentum during matches when things aren’t going as expected. It’s a tricky area to tackle, especially since I’m not a sports psychologist. But, with my years of experience on tour, I do my best to help Stefi navigate these mental challenges. Sometimes, the experience of being out there, day in and day out, can offer insights you won’t find in textbooks.
By 12:30 p.m., we sat down for a healthy lunch—some salad and protein. I have to say, the food at this hotel is excellent. And yes, I caved once again to the temptation of the Turkish desserts. I indulged in a couple of sweet treats, and honestly, I don’t regret it one bit.
After a short rest, we headed back to the courts for our main session of the day. We worked on speed and reaction drills, followed by a solid warm-up to prepare for a two-hour back-to-back session on court. One reason we planned for a double session today is to replicate the physical demands Stefi will face during competition. In tournament play, you often spend long stretches on court, so it’s crucial to get the body used to those conditions ahead of time.
One of the key elements of preparation during training days is finding the right hitting partners. Sometimes you need a player who can provide consistent rhythm, and other times you need someone who plays with aggression. Today, we opted to mix both styles. In the first hour, Stefi hit with her Romanian doubles partner, a highly aggressive player. The goal was to shorten Stefi’s backswing and work on controlling the ball under pressure. For the second hour, she hit with a Russian player, who brought more rhythm and longer rallies. This allowed Stefi to focus on footwork and weight transfer, two areas we’ve been emphasizing heavily in the past few days.
Overall, though, the sessions didn’t go as smoothly as we hoped. I think there’s just a lot of new information for Stefi to process, and implementing everything in the next two days may be a challenge. But, we’ll keep pushing and do our best to fine-tune everything before the competition.
As the qualification rounds have already begun, you can feel the shift in atmosphere. The tension is rising, and the focus has become sharper. In the dining room, there are fewer laughs and more serious faces—everyone is dialed in. That’s professional tennis for you. There’s so much at stake: dreams, hopes, ranking points, and reputation on the circuit.
After the on-court work, we wrapped up the day with a good stretching session and a bit of time in the sauna. Today, I’m feeling more tired than usual, so I decided to skip my cardio session and spend a bit more time writing this blog and recharging. I’ll need all the energy I can muster in the coming days as the tournament approaches.
We’ll have an early dinner, and I may chat with Stefi again to keep her mindset positive and focused. But, as always, you’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see how things unfold.
More to come tomorrow—stay tuned!