Pliskova emerges as one of the favourites
Karolina Pliskova, who is currently the bookmakers’ choice to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish next month, was also fancied to do well at the All England Club 12 months ago after winning the title in Nottingham and finishing runner-up in Eastbourne. At Wimbledon, however, she struggled to beat Yanina Wickmayer in the first round and went down in straight sets to Japan’s Misaki Doi, the world No 49, in the second.
“It’s tough to say this, but sometimes it’s better if you are losing because then you don’t expect anything,” Pliskova said as she looked forward to her 2017 grass-court season, which will begin in Eastbourne. “Sometimes the results can come just at the time when you’re not playing well.”
She added: “Maybe I was expecting too much from myself at Wimbledon that time and that was why I was too shaky and didn’t play well.”
Pliskova is the favourite for Wimbledon despite having never gone beyond the second round, even if the draw has sometimes done her few favours, with Sabine Lisicki and Coco Vandeweghe, two proven grass-court performers, her conquerors in 2014 and 2015.
There can be little doubt, however, that the 25-yearold Czech’s game is made for grass. She uses her 6ft 1in frame to deliver a fearsome serve which has yielded 249 aces this year, more than any other player on the women’s tour. She moves well for such a tall player, hits big ground strokes and has learned les- sons from her Wimbledon experience last summer.
“I played really badly against Doi and after that I decided to change a few things,” Pliskova said. “The level I was playing at the time was really bad. I said to myself: ‘I cannot lose matches like this, even if I’m playing like shit.’ Pliskova is the favourite at Wimbledon - despite having never reached the third round (Getty)
“This year there have been plenty of times when I don’t think I’ve been playing amazing tennis, but even when it’s not one of my best days I’ve been able to win. It seems like everybody is playing better against me these days so you just have to find a way to stay with your opponent and then beat them. Against Doi I wasn’t able to do that.” THE INDEPENDENT