SAM BACKING MENTOR TO DELIVER HOME GOODS
SAM Stosur says she is going “back to basics” as the Gold Coaster braces for the final few big pushes of her tennis career in Australia.
The 34-year-old yesterday announced she had hired her former coach, Gold Coaster Nick Watkins, to travel with her through the Australian circuit.
Watkins, who coached Stosur when she was 16, agreed to join her for the Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne tournaments with a view to possibly extending the association through to overseas events.
Stosur and former Australian Davis Cup coach Josh Eagle this year ended their association which had run for more than 12 months.
Now, the one-time US Open champion is eyeing a back-to-the-future approach.
“I’ve spent two weeks training with Nick and really loved it,’’ said Stosur, who is ranked No.74 and will be a Brisbane International maindraw wildcard.
“I went back to basics a little. We had a great time and we worked on a lot of different things in my game.
“It looks like he can help me for the summer at least. Who knows? I want to keep it going.
“We got a lot of things done in training this month.
“It’s a matter of working out how much time we can spent together before January. He’s got a lot going on with his own business.’’
Stosur said she would be practising mostly in Melbourne, where more professional women players will be, before Christmas.
The former world No.4 said last month that she had a year in mind for which to retire but did not want to make it public just yet.