Russian world No. 50 Veronika Kudermetova shared her thoughts on various aspects of her tournament experience, including dealing with match delays, adapting to different playing conditions, and supporting her younger sister.
Question: Initially, your match [in Rome] was scheduled for a relatively early start, but now it`s evening and quite dark. How did you spend those waiting hours?
Answer: It was actually fine, I can`t complain. I arrived, practiced, ate, then did some recovery work before the match. I only waited about an hour and a half to two hours. I`ve been in worse situations, so it was okay.
Kudermetova also commented on the demanding tournament schedule. She had just played the doubles final in Madrid on Sunday, May 3rd, before traveling to Rome the very next day.
Question: So, you stayed in Madrid until the very last day, playing the doubles final on Sunday. When did you fly here, and have you had time to adapt?
Answer: I flew in on Monday and have practiced twice already. It`s tough, of course. The conditions here are completely different; even though the balls are the same, their flight is different, the speeds vary, the courts are different, everything is quite specific. More time is needed for adaptation. I wish I had more.
Furthermore, Kudermetova discussed her younger sister Polina Kudermetova`s (world No. 57) first-round singles loss at the Rome tournament in Italy. The 21-year-old Polina was defeated by Romanian qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse (world No. 88) with a score of 7/6(10), 4/6, 2/6.
Question: Your sister lost today; did you follow her match at all?
Answer: Yes, I watched the first set and the second set until 4-4, then I had to leave for my own match. Of course, it`s a shame she couldn`t win, but she fought hard until the very end. I believe matches like this, with such a tough fight, can be very beneficial for her.
Question: Have you managed to see her since then?
Answer: Yes, just for a minute. Of course, she`s sad, but that`s part of an athlete`s life. Sometimes we are sad, sometimes we are happy.
The 28-year-old Veronika Kudermetova won her own first-round match against Italian Lucrezia Stefanini 7/5, 6/2 and advanced to the next round, where she is scheduled to play American Amanda Anisimova.
