Maria Sakkari shakes off BJK Cup fatigue, brings clear mind to Madrid clay

Maria Sakkari enjoyed an impressive serving day to kick off her Mutua Madrid Open campaign, striking seven aces to defeat Donna Vekic, 6-3, 6-2 in her first match of the European clay-court swing.

Few were more surprised by that stat than Sakkari herself.

“I’ve actually been struggling with my serve the last few days in practice,” she revealed to Prakash Amritraj in her visit to the Tennis Channel Live Desk. “Today it felt like I wasn’t. I was happy with the way I served because I was mixing it up really well. I’m sad that it’s not hot out here but when it eventually gets warmer, my serve is going to bounce more and feel better.”

Sakkari has certainly been feeling better on the court after a wildly successful month of North American tournaments, reaching the BNP Paribas Open final, the Miami Open quarterfinals, and the semifinals of the Credit One Charleston Open on green clay.

Still, the world No. 6, who won her first WTA title on clay back in 2019, admits that comfort on clay had been elusive prior to this present surge.

“I’ve been a little bit, not unlucky, but I didn’t have a clear mind the last few years on the clay,” she explained after booking a third-round clash against either No. 28 seed Elise Mertens or 2018 Roland Garros runner-up Sloane Stephens. “I didn’t know how I had to play or what I had to do. Obviously, I had a good run last year here, making the semis but overall, I didn’t really feel good or comfortable ever since making the semis at the French back in 2021.

“I do believe I can play really good on clay again. I think my game this year is getting better after the U.S. tour. I don’t see a reason not to play good on clay this year.”

Integral to that success will be a more offensive mindset, one that she has been honing with new coach David Witt. Sakkari and Witt paired up just before her spring renaissance, and despite a busy schedule that included a week of Billie Jean King Cup zonal play, the famously fit Greek is confident she can carry her March momentum through Roland Garros.

“I’m trying to stay aggressive on the clay because every player has a tendency to play a more defensive game when they step on clay, and so I feel like, whoever is more aggressive has better chances. Of course, here, the points last longer. I just have to do what I did in Charleston and things will go well for me.”