Two-time US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki may have made her major breakthrough in the hustle and bustle of New York, but she first came to prominence under calmer circumstances, winning her first junior Grand Slam title in 2006 at the Wimbledon Championships.
“I like to play on grass,” she said at the All England Club this past summer. “It’s a fun surface for me to play on. I enjoy it.”
Though her maiden Premier title came in New Haven, it was less than a year later that her second big title came at the Aegon International Eastbourne.
Despite these early successes, Wimbledon remains the only major tournament where she is yet to reach the quarterfinals. Most maddeningly, her tournament has ended on the Championships’ Manic Monday five of the last seven years.
“I’m very motivated for that. I’ve won Eastbourne. I’ve done so well there so many times. I won junior Wimbledon. I feel so comfortable on the grass. There’s no reason why I shouldn’t be able to make it past the fourth round.”
In defense of the Dane, she has run into some stiff opposition at this stage of the tournament. Three of her round of 16 losses have come to future Wimbledon starlets in Sabine Lisicki, Petra Kvitova, and Garbiñe Muguruza, who went on to reach the final later that week.
A player who enjoys outfoxing opponents, Wozniacki is aware of the need to earn the initiative early in grass court rallies.
“It’s all about being good on the first couple of shots in the rally. Once you have that, you can kind of dictate, and then you have to think about where you can place the ball.”
Wozniacki is also hoping to make changes when it comes to her court assignments, having ended up on the wrong end of one too many matches on Wimbledon’s newly constructed Court 2.
“Court 2 hasn’t been very nice to me through the years. Maybe next year I’ll ask to be put on one of the small courts. I don’t know. Try and mix it up a little bit.”
Spoken in jest, the former No.1 and two-time year-end No.1 is still hungry for the big results, and the big stages that come with them – though she admits it’s even tougher for WTA players to get their due at Wimbledon.
“The women really haven’t gotten the opportunity here to play on the big courts. You only get one woman’s match on Court 1 and Centre Court. Most of last week it was only one woman’s match on Court 2 as well. It’s definitely different. That’s all I can say.
“I think a lot of us women feel like we deserve to play on the big courts in front of a big crowd, as well.”
With another Wimbledon on the horizon in 2016, will Wozniacki fulfill her potential for Grand Slam glory at the tournament that started it all?
