Less than six months ago Carla Suarez Navarro was one of the most dominant players on the WTA Tour. The 27-year-old defeated five top ten players within the first five months of 2015 as she was starting to reach the peak of her form. The upsurge in her form was impressive until she encountered a turbulent second half of the year.
In the first half of 2015 she reached her first premier mandatory final in Miami by beating Agnieszka Radwańska, Venus Williams and Andrea Petkovic before losing in the final to world number 1 Serena Williams. The run to the final took the Spaniard in the world’s top 10 where she became the third Spanish woman to reach the top 10 after Arantxa-Sanchez Vicario and Conchita Martinez. Her deep run at a premier mandatory tournament wasn’t a one off. She also reached the final in Rome before losing to Maria Sharapova. In addition Suarez Navarro also reached the final at the Antwerp Games in Belgium. The trio of impressive performances justifies why she is in the top ten, however her dream 2015 run has come crashing down following a disastrous second half of the season.
The season went from one extreme to another for Suarez Navarro. This week she won her first match since June by defeating Kateryna Bondarenko in the first round of the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. The win comes as a relief for her and her team after eight consecutive losses to players such as Sloane Stephens, Alison Riske and rising star Jelena Ostapenko. The explanation for the recent downfall in Suarez Navarro’s form during the second half of 2015 remain unclear. She hasn’t experienced any substantial physical issues, so mental issues are a factor. During an interview in May, she candidly admitted that she has been working on her mental game this year.
“I want to play more and be more regular because the top players can play really good in the big tournaments as well as all year round. I am working mentally to be more of a regular player all season”. She said.
The world number 10 said that the work on the mental side is the most important part for her. Losing eight consecutive matches will affect any players confidence regardless of their world ranking. She isn’t the first player to experience a confidence crisis with other players such as Eugenie Bouchard experiencing a similar situation.
A player with the same calibre as Suarez Navarro doesn’t just loose her form due a change in surface or the climate, there must be a deeper reason. The Spaniard openly admits that her favourite surface is clay but is aware of the importance of the hardcourts.
“90% of the season is played on hardcourts. So I need to improve more on my game to play better there. For sure, my favorite surface is clay”. She admitted.
There is no straightforward solution to Suarez Navarro’s troublesome dilemma. Grabbing her first win since June is a massive step forward, but if she wants to remain in the top ten she needs to quickly regain her consistency. This will be a tough task for a player who loves to play on clay, but will finish her season on the hardcourts.
