Kiwi brings eastern European flavour
Cultural melting pot may provide the difference for aspiring teen
Some time this afternoon, the latest young hope in New Zealand women’s tennis will take the court at the ASB Classic.
Valentina Ivanov, 17, who won the national championships two weeks ago to gain a qualifying wildcard for the WTA event, will take her first bow at this level, playing fellow Kiwi Paige Hourigan in the first round.
Ivanov is the most recent in a long line of aspiring Kiwis to get an opportunity at the flagship tournament, although her background is different to most, having grown up in Australia, with Russian parents, who both represented Uzbekistan at international level.
It’s the kind of cultural melting pot that could provide a point of difference, as producing WTA-level players from this part of the world is one of the toughest assignments in sport.
No one has broken through since Marina Erakovic in the mid-2000s.
Sacha Jones was a top junior (she reached No 11 in the world) and achieved some promising WTA results but never cracked the top 100, even after aligning with Australia, and retired by the age of 24.
Jade Lewis received heavy financial support and performed creditably at the ASB Classic but couldn’t handle the grind of the circuit and quit the sport in April, aged 19.
Ivanov has a long road ahead but also time on her side. Tennis is in her blood. Father Sergey was a former Uzbekistan Fed Cup captain, while mother Oksana was a member of the Uzbek team, and Valentina was coached by both parents until she was 12.
“It was hard sometimes — I don’t think anyone who has had their parents as a coach will say it is easy,” Ivanov says with a laugh.
“When you have a coach, you go back home and you have your parents to comfort you, especially if you’ve had a hard day or a bad training.
“It was tough. You get a bit less sympathy, it’s a lot tougher mentally. You’ve had a fight on the court with your coach, and then you come back home and it’s your Mum and Dad and it continues at home.”
It was perhaps exacerbated by the Eastern European mentality and work ethic, famous throughout the tennis world.
“It’s a bit more harsh,” said Ivanov. “The Aussie or Kiwi way is a bit more laid-back; in Russia, it’s not like that. If you are not having a good day, you are getting yelled at. But I was grateful to have them as I was growing up. It is a hard sport and you won’t make it unless you have a personality.
“It’s tough out there. Once you are on the court, it’s just you, and it can become overwhelming in the moment. So having the right kind of upbringing, stricter parents, discipline . . . that can help a lot.”
You’ve had a fight on the court with your coach, and then you come back home and it’s your Mum and Dad and it continues at home. Valentina Ivanov
Ivanov was born in Christchurch but has been based in Sydney since her parents moved to Australia when she was two years old. As a 12-yearold, she was placed into Tennis New Zealand’s targeted athlete programme and has achieved plenty of junior success, especially at regional level. Her junior ranking has slipped to 159 from a high of 85 but she was affected by injuries in 2016 and 2017.
A measure of her potential came at two ITF senior tournaments this year in Belgium and Holland, where she came through qualifying to reach the quarter-finals, then the round of 16 in consecutive weeks.
Her win at the nationals over New Zealand No 1 Hourigan was also impressive, considering her heavy build-up before the tournament.
Ivanov plans to play on the professional circuit in 2019, starting with three ITF events in Egypt.
“I’ve got plan A, B and C after that, depending how I go,” said Ivanov. “But I am looking forward to the challenge.”