Buoyed by new team, can Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova score third big US Open upset over Iga Swiatek?

NEW YORK—Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova’s best result at the US Open was over a decade ago. For the No. 25 seed making her 15th main-draw appearance, it may as well have been a lifetime.

“You know today on the court, they showed on the screen that it was back in 2011 that I made the quarterfinals,” she told me on Thursday and added with a laugh, “That was ages ago! I was thinking, ‘What the hell have I been doing for all those years?’”

It has been even longer since she lifted a trophy in Flushing Meadows, winning the junior title back in 2006—as a fellow ’91, I reassured her we’re not old—and though she has achieved much in the 18 years since, she admits the transition to the proverbial big leagues took longer than she expected.

“I was also very much putting pressure on myself when I was young, always wanting to get good results,” she told me after coming back to beat Elisabetta Cocciaretto in three sets. “Now, I have some different goals where I’m trying more to enjoy the fight and the process.

“When I was seeded before, you feel obliged to go through because I was seeded and my opponent wasn’t. Now, it’s less about numbers because everyone is such a great athlete and player. It all comes down to difference of a few shots, or one-two decisions you’re making, and then factor in luck. I just try to take it with this approach now.”

A finalist at 2021 Roland Garros, the winner of 12 WTA titles has posted her most consistent results at the Australian Open—the other hard-court major tournament—reaching three quarterfinals in four years. For a player with clean technique and capabilities on all surfaces, the 33-year-old is aware much more was within her grasp.

New York is definitely crazy...But I think the beauty of New York is kind of this hectic, Manhattan sort of vibe. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova

“Definitely, consistency was missing from my game and my career. That’s for sure. I’ve had some really good results, great results and winning titles. Other times I was so-so.

“Overall, it was like watching the heart beat go up and down!” she laughed, tracing the air to mimic vital signs.

Looking to build on an encouraging 2023, during which she returned to action after missing most of the season prior due to a chronic knee injury, Pavlyuchenkova stalled out after the early hard-court swing and failed to win back-to-back matches at 10 consecutive tournaments.

“I started the season quite well but the clay and grass season was not great,” she recalled, having enjoyed semifinal finishes in Linz and Doha back in February. “Of There were some doubts and a lot of changes with my team and overall with my motivation.”

Part of that inconsistency was due to her discomfort with what has become the modern tennis entourage. While most travel with a staff that includes coaches, physios, and fitness trainers, the former world No. 11 hit the road with partner Mathias and hitting partner Yannick Mertens for most of the year.

“I was going through a period where I thought I was ok to travel just with my boyfriend and a hitting partner,” she said. “But obviously, after the clay season, I started to feel like something was missing and I couldn’t find the game. It was tough to keep motivation up because when you lose, you feel kind of useless.”

She opted to make a big change: not merely hiring a new coach but, like Aryna Sabalenka before her, sought out an expert who could optimize her serve and groundstrokes.

“Someone actually suggested a biomechanical coach,” she revealed. “He’s helped me a lot so far, and I’m really happy he came on, actually two days before Cincinnati. It was a risky decision that I decided to make but I got the reward and we’d only just met!”

I’ve had some really good results, great results and winning titles. Other times I was so-so. Overall, it was like watching the heart beat go up and down! Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova

The reward was her best result in almost six months, a quarterfinal run at the WTA 1000 that featured a win over reigning Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen. Though she lost in the last eight to similarly resurgent Paula Badosa, she took that momentum to New York and earned her best Grand Slam result of 2024.

“I feel like I’m starting to put the puzzle back together,” she said. “I was still very nervous coming into the Slam. I was seeded again this year, which is never easy. I’m just happy so far with my game and how I’m managing.”

Pavlyuchenkova’s team has nearly doubled since the clay-court swing, adding a physio in addition to her biomechanic coach, but retained Mertens as her hitting partner and Mathias—known to be one of the tour’s snazziest dressers—remains very much in the mix.

“Thank God he’s not from tennis!” she joked. “I have a lot of tennis in my life. But obviously, I’m so grateful because he’s been super supportive pushing me through. He’s the one who believes in me most, even more than I do. That helps and that’s very important for me, especially at this stage of my career.

“After traveling so much with me and watching all this tennis, he’s starting to understand it better but still, it’s a different perspective from someone who grew up in the sport. Luckily, he’s not coaching me anymore, so it’s just nice to have his support.”

She will take all the support she can get ahead of her night-session clash with world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, who she will face for the first time since the 2023 Internazionali BNL d’Italia. At the time, Pavlyuchenkova was only just returning from her injury, but Swiatek was ruthless, dropping a double bagel on her at the Foro Italico.

“The last time was horrendous,” she said. “The only excuse I can give is that I was just coming back from injury at the time. But I didn’t win a game. I lost 6-0, 6-0.

“So, my goal is to win at least a few games! That would already be an improvement. She’s the No. 1 player in the world, and I just want to do a little bit better than Rome.”

The 2022 champion, rather ominously, looks in bagel form again after winning a 6-0 set over Ena Shibahara in the second round, putting the onus on Pavlyuchenkova to steel through the Open chaos, put on the kind of display that first turned heads in 2011 and score the we’ve seen take down Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic.

“New York is definitely crazy,” she smiled. “This ride that we take back to the city, I was actually stressing about it today. When you’re third on, there’s no ‘not before’ time, and sometimes with this crazy traffic I was thinking, ‘I don’t know what time I should leave the hotel!’

“But I think the beauty of New York is kind of this hectic, Manhattan sort of vibe. And at the end of the day, almost all of us are in the same conditions. That’s what I’m trying to tell myself, anyway.”