Sam Stosur confronts Melbourne demons again........
Melbourne: Sam Stosur
confirmed her potential with a long-awaited grand slam crown at the U.S.
Open but she will confront her mental demons once again at Melbourne
Park where the burden of expectation has often left her cowering like a
rabbit in the headlights.
The Australian number one`s emphatic win over Serena Williams on the American`s stomping ground at Flushing Meadows in September has ratcheted up the pressure again, with local fans expectant of a first home champion since Chris Lewis`s 1978 triumph in the women`s singles.Despite gleaning confidence from joining the grand slam club, world number six Stosur has appeared as brittle as ever on Australian soil, bundled out early in both the Brisbane and Sydney warm-up events.
Unlike many on the tour, the plainspoken Queenslander has never shied away from discussing her stage-fright in Melbourne, where she has never passed the fourth round in nine appearances.
"I definitely analyse it, talk about it, assess what happened out on court and why, all that kind of thing," Stosur said of her disappointing leadup, which included a straight sets loss in Sydney to Italy`s Francesca Schiavone, her 2010 French Open final nemesis.
"Kind of once we`ve had that talk, then, yeah, you don`t want to dwell on anything too negative.
"You can`t dwell on anything that you weren`t happy about for too long. Yeah, take what you can out of it, do whatever you need to change, if you need to change anything."
For Stosur, a muscular 27-year-old with a killer forehand, that amounts to easing the pressure on herself and consulting a psychologist at the Australian Institute of Sport.
Stosur said she had been in touch with Ruth Anderson, the psychologist she credited for turning her game around when she reached a low ebb early last year.
"I think at the end of the day I just need to worry about playing good tennis," she said.
"That`s what I`ve been trying to do on the practice courts since then and not get too caught up in, you know, is it absolutely perfect, all that kind of thing.
"It`s hard to always play perfect. Maybe when you`re a little bit stressed, that`s what you`re always looking for.
"You can go out there and play well; it doesn`t have to be perfect. Give a hundred percent, compete hard. If I can do that then, yeah, I`ll be happy."
The Australian number one`s emphatic win over Serena Williams on the American`s stomping ground at Flushing Meadows in September has ratcheted up the pressure again, with local fans expectant of a first home champion since Chris Lewis`s 1978 triumph in the women`s singles.Despite gleaning confidence from joining the grand slam club, world number six Stosur has appeared as brittle as ever on Australian soil, bundled out early in both the Brisbane and Sydney warm-up events.
Unlike many on the tour, the plainspoken Queenslander has never shied away from discussing her stage-fright in Melbourne, where she has never passed the fourth round in nine appearances.
"I definitely analyse it, talk about it, assess what happened out on court and why, all that kind of thing," Stosur said of her disappointing leadup, which included a straight sets loss in Sydney to Italy`s Francesca Schiavone, her 2010 French Open final nemesis.
"Kind of once we`ve had that talk, then, yeah, you don`t want to dwell on anything too negative.
"You can`t dwell on anything that you weren`t happy about for too long. Yeah, take what you can out of it, do whatever you need to change, if you need to change anything."
For Stosur, a muscular 27-year-old with a killer forehand, that amounts to easing the pressure on herself and consulting a psychologist at the Australian Institute of Sport.
Stosur said she had been in touch with Ruth Anderson, the psychologist she credited for turning her game around when she reached a low ebb early last year.
"I think at the end of the day I just need to worry about playing good tennis," she said.
"That`s what I`ve been trying to do on the practice courts since then and not get too caught up in, you know, is it absolutely perfect, all that kind of thing.
"It`s hard to always play perfect. Maybe when you`re a little bit stressed, that`s what you`re always looking for.
"You can go out there and play well; it doesn`t have to be perfect. Give a hundred percent, compete hard. If I can do that then, yeah, I`ll be happy."
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