Comments by Donna Vekić’s father Igor, after she lost in the Thailand Open first round, on the difficult times she’s had of late. Quoted in “Donna hasn’t tasted the sweetness of the second round for five months” by Anton Filić of Croatian newspaper Večernji List.
“Certainly, that’s not a result we can be satisfied with—Donna herself isn’t satisfied. But every match is a different story. After the Fed Cup in Budapest, she’d traveled a long way and didn’t manage to adapt. And the conditions are difficult in Thailand.”
On her 1-6 1-6 loss to Aleksandra Krunić in Fed Cup:
“Donna missed seven game points. I can’t say she would have won if she’d taken advantage of one of those chances, but she played a high quality match. Donna’s simply going through a period every young sportsman or sportswoman goes through. It’s unrealistic to expect the results to always be improving; down periods are normal. But she’s surrounded by top experts—above all, her coaches John Evert and Iva Majoli—and they’ll surely know the best way to help her. It’s unnecessary to put added pressure on Donna by talking about her poor results.”
Donna won’t play until Indian Wells, but will spend time at the Evert Academy in Boca Raton, Florida (where Ivanišević and Čilić will also be training) to prepare for that tournament.
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Translated by Mark with an assist from Ana.
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