Soccer-mad Muguruza in the spotlight as she bids to do the double
SPAIN’S participation in Euro 2016 is providing a welcome distraction for Garbine Muguruza as she arrives at Wimbledon with the chance to become only the second female since Steffi Graf in 1996 to claim the Roland Garros-All England Club double.
Muguruza turned up to her press conference yesterday wearing a Spain shirt as she tries to switch off from the newly-found pressure on her shoulders after winning her first ever Grand Slam title in Paris last month.
‘For Spanish people, we are crazy [about football],’ said Muguruza. ‘If you don’t follow football [in Spain], then you’re dead. You don’t have conversation.
‘I like Sergio Ramos, who plays for Real Madrid. I like [Andres] Iniesta.’
Muguruza will have to focus fully on her tennis, though, tomorrow when she opens her Wimbledon campaign against Italian Camila Giorgi, the match potentially clashing with Spain’s last-16 encounter with Italy at 5pm.
It was here in SW19 last year that Muguruza made a name for herself with the British public, reaching the final of Wimbledon before losing to Serena Williams, who completed the Roland Garros-All England Club double herself last year.
Expectations are high for Muguruza this year as the 22-year-old finds herself under the spotlight in Spain as the country’s most prominent player here following the withdrawal of Rafael Nadal earlier this month due to a wrist injury. ‘People are looking more at what I’m doing and will be watching me more,’ said Muguruza.
‘But I think that is fine. It is a good sign. I like it and I will try to do my best.
‘I was so happy that finally this year, I did better than Nadal at the French Open. I was like, “this is so weird”.’
British No 16 seed Johanna Konta, meanwhile, reported a clean bill of health after suffering a nasty-looking fall on the court during her semi-final match at the Aegon International on Friday. Konta said: ‘I’m fine. It was more the shock of the tumble than the actual tumble.’
Konta’s conqueror Karolina Pliskova, the Czech world No 16, was defeated in yesterday’s final, going down 7-5 6-3 to Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova, ranked five places below her.