Jasmine Paolini is going through a transitional phase in her sports career. After reaching the elite alongside Renzo Furlan, her coach of the last decade, the Italian decided to make a clean break in search of a new experience on the circuit. This led to the emergence of Marc López, who guided her to victory at the Rome WTA 1000 in just three tournaments together. However, that success wasn’t enough to extend their collaboration beyond the grass season. And now what? Well, Federico Gaio, although he has been provisionally positioned by the FIT, awaiting the right person to step in.

Starting off this WTA 1000 in Cincinnati with a victory was fitting, achieved this Sunday against Maria Sakkari with a score of 7-6, 7-6. The match was tight, especially the tiebreaks, particularly the second one where the Italian was leading 6-0 before enduring the Greek player’s comeback to 6-5. At that critical moment, the Greek’s double fault secured Paolini’s progression to the next round, a relief for her. Shortly after, she shared her thoughts on Tennis Channel.

Sakkari’s double fault to end the match

“I feel really sorry for her, nobody wants to finish a match like that, but at that moment, I felt a lot of relief. I was wishing for her to fail on that serve, to gift me a double fault, honestly (laughs). It was a very tough match, and the tiebreaks were tough as well, especially the second one where I had the chance to finish it with a volley at the net but missed. From 6-0, I went to 6-5, so at that point, I was starting to genuinely worry.”

A tiebreak that nearly turned into a drama

“You try to accept what is happening, but it’s clear that when you start losing ground in such a situation, you’re not making the right decisions. On the other hand, I have to admit that she also started playing much better from that moment. In my head, I was trying to motivate myself to keep fighting, reminding myself of the things I was doing well and pushing myself to win that last point I needed to seal the victory. But yes, I admit that in that final point, I was hoping she would make a double fault to end it all, that’s the reality.”

Conditions in Cincinnati

“I’m not sure, I’d say this year they’re a bit slower than last season, though I’m not certain. Despite this feeling, they are still really fast conditions, the ball may bounce a bit more than last season, but there’s also a lot of humidity. Every day we have extremely high temperatures and scorching heat. It’s tough to play in such conditions, but I love playing when it’s sunny and the weather is good.”

Changes within the team

“Things happen, sometimes you feel it’s the right time for a change, to move some pieces around. With Renzo (Furlan), I had an extraordinarily long-lasting relationship, seven magnificent years with him, but at that point, I was looking for something different. Now, let’s say the same thing has happened again, I’ve made a change. Currently, the goal is to find the right person, someone who brings me calmness, luckily the Italian Tennis Federation is supporting me a lot with someone I know well from seeing her train there since she was a kid. So far, we have a good rapport, we’ll see what the future holds, who my next coach will be.”

What do you expect from your future coach?

“Someone who truly knows tennis well, someone who is very relaxed, who brings me calmness, as I am totally the opposite, I’m never calm (laughs). I simply ask for that, someone who knows the tennis world well and is relaxed.”

Mixed doubles with Musetti at the US Open

“I’m very excited, it’s true that we’ve hardly played doubles together, but this time it’s different for many of us. We’ll have to come together and find our own way to compete in this discipline, but I think it will be great. A big event awaits us in New York, with many people watching us, so I hope it will be a super fun few days. I discuss it a lot with Sara (Errani) and we joke about it, as there is a possibility of facing Errani/Vavassori; I hope if it happens, it’s not in the first round. It will be a tough draw, for sure, we’ll have to review the tactical aspect thoroughly.”