Sakkari: “I feel like I’m at home, especially in Melbourne”

World No.6 Maria Sakkari said that she is calm and “ready to for what 2023 is going to bring” in an interview with ausopen.com while in Perth.

Sakkari welcomed the new tennis season in Australia representing Greece at the United Cup, adding that “it’s the perfect place to start the year” and “a lot of fun”.

For the 27-year-old athlete, Australia and especially Melbourne exude a feeling of familiarity.

“The Australian culture is very special and unique. Everyone is really nice. There’s a large Greek community here too, so I do enjoy that a lot,” Sakkari enthused.

“I feel like I’m at home, especially in Melbourne, because everywhere I go, I can hear Greek.

“The weather is great. The tournaments are very well organised. You’re still a little tired from the preseason, so you want to come to a nice place with a nice climate. I don’t think you could pick a better place than Australia.”

Harking back on her turbulent 2022, the tennis star said that she was not enjoying being one of the best players in the world, when seeded No.3, explaining that early exits at Grand Slam tournaments compounded the pressure.

“I want to win the Australian Open. I believe that I’m in good form, but you never know in tennis how things go.”

“I’m super proud of myself. It wasn’t easy,” she said, acknowledging a second year-end top-10 finish meant a lot.

“I can tell you it’s a lot better than last year. Last year I was in Adelaide. I didn’t want to be there. I felt like the gap between the WTA Finals and Adelaide was very, very small last year. I was not used to that. It was very emotional, you know, the end of the season, and I just was not ready to start again (in) 2022,” she added. “This year I had the experience from what I felt last year to try and, you know, handle it better.”

Sakkari also expressed her gratitude for being invited to compete at the inaugural United Cup alongside her Greek compatriots, an experience that helped alleviate pressure in the opening week of the season.

The highest-ranked Greek woman in history highlighted the boost witnessing “very unique moments”, stating that the reception from the community “makes my time here in Australia and my preparation for the Australian Open a lot easier”.