Nice article on our resident Wee Elephant.
"Now I just want to have fun out there and enjoy competing. I know I can still play well and even win tournaments. I just want to try to get the best I can out of the last weeks of this season and then finally have a good holiday and start preparing and practising hard again for next season."
"I was just a little bit flat after Paris and at Wimbledon I wasn't feeling 100 percent to compete at that high level," Ivanovic admitted. "I wasn't too much worried about it and felt I needed a holiday to relax a little bit, to re-charge my batteries again, but then I got injured.
"The problem was that no one knew what was actually wrong. I did so many tests and MRIs and no-one could pick up anything, and then after the Olympics they realised it was two cysts with water there which was causing inflammation and the inflammation couldn't come down at all.
Obviously that was frustrating because I felt like I wasted a month." With this year almost behind her Ivanovic is now trying to set goals for next, but an extensive Sony Ericsson WTA Tour reorganisation means she is not sure what to expect.
Although prize money will be increased by 40 per cent, the Tour is largely dictating where the players must compete. "We don't have much choice," said Ivanovic.
"It's already pretty much already decided for us what we have to play. They're trying to make an easier schedule for us but I believe it's going to be even tougher.
"There are a few parts in the season where it's going to be really hard, lots of tournaments in a row that you have to play. There are a lot of changes and we have to wait and see how it's going to go.
"I think it's good that tournaments will have guaranteed players and week after week have top players competing against each other. I think that's good for women's tennis. But on us individually it's tough to say what impact it's going to have on us.
"For example, there are going to have some new nine-day events, and if you play the week before I think it's going to be very hard. They're also talking about taking away byes at some events."
There comes a point where the players have to suck it up and do what's best for the sport. Obviously they all feel like they should have some say in the matter, and they should, but come on. If the playing field is level (meaning everyone has to play the same rigorous schedule) then what's there really to complain about?
This and other issues, like cute boys, makeup, and fashion, will surely be discussed at the pajama party that the top ladies will be throwing in Doha. I would pay SO MUCH MONEY to be in the room when all that goes down.
At least she isn't getting distracted by her studies:
"I'm studying economics and when I have
time off in November I want to do more exams. But honestly, the last
couple of months I've been so focused on my tennis and trying to get
better I didn't have time to study my books. Even if I had them with me
I didn't want to see them."
Yeah, I felt the same way in college. Except I wasn't injured. And I wasn't focused on tennis. I was focused on my couch. Whatever, same thing.
