Champion's Corner: CoCo Vandeweghe
The lush grass in ‘s-Hertogenbosch proved to be fertile ground once again for CoCo Vandeweghe. The 24-year-old American lifted the trophy at the Ricoh Open for the second time in three years after beating Kristina Mladenovic 7-5, 7-5 in the final on Sunday. Both of Vandeweghe’s career titles have come in Den Bosch, winning her first as a qualifier in 2014.
It was a frustrating clay season for Vandeweghe, where she went 1-3 and missed a big opportunity to challenge for a spot on the United States Olympic Team. Candid as always, the California native admitted she struggled with her motivation in Den Bosch — “I was just honestly a crabby person this week” –but she was able to work her through the draw without losing a set. The title moves Vandeweghe up to No.32, right on the bubble of being seeded at Wimbledon, where she was a quarterfinalist last year.
WTA Insider caught up with Vandeweghe after getting a much-needed title on Sunday.
WTA Insider: Congratulations. How does it feel to once again win the title at the Ricoh Open?
Vandeweghe: It’s a little bit different than your first title. Your first title is all exciting. It’s something you dreamed about always doing. It’s funny, coming into this tournament I was pretty much on a cool even platform the whole time. A common word that’s been thrown around wasI kept my composure together very well through the whole week. That’s not always easy to do especially coming from clay to grass, so it was a hard change.
WTA Insider: Did you go home after the French Open?
Vandeweghe: No, I actually went home after Rome, so just before the French Open, because I wanted to play all of the grass and honestly I was having a really difficult clay season. I had some really tough first round matches, one against Safarova, another one against Venus. I had 10 days on my hands before the French Open and I was like what am I going to do with 10 days in Europe? I’m going to go home. So I went back to California and came two days before the French and played. I was actually on the same flight as Lindsay Davenport and Justin Gimelstob, so I was coming in with the commentators.
WTA Insider: So you go to the French Open, obviously a tough loss second round loss there to Irina-Camelia Begu. What was your mindset going from clay to grass?
Vandeweghe: The clay was actually really disappointing. It was the last chance to make points for Olympics. I knew going in it was going to be my most difficult surface from any other surfaces that I play on. I was trying to do my best.
I had a really tough second round that could have gone either way. I honestly didn’t feel like I could lose it when I was playing, and when it happened and I lost it was like shock. I couldn’t put it into words. It was such a heart-breaking loss. I was really emotionally drained and physically too.
Luckily the next day I had doubles with Christina McHale and we played a match so I didn’t have time to wallow. So I got a win under my belt and then also had mixed doubles. So I had a lot more matches to play and compete at, which I think was beneficial for me mentally. To be there, still competing and figuring things out, getting my feet underneath me and my tennis game. Matches are always beneficial for anyone. When you’re playing a bunch of matches you’re going to feel more comfortable in your own skin on the court.
But the transition from clay to grass, I only had a day of practice out here before I played my match. The thing I focus on is definitely trying to make my swings as compact as possible, that’s first and foremost. Also getting my feet underneath me. I definitely worked through my fitness through the tournament, working on my stability, different things. So when I plant and move I’m sure-footed and moving well, which I think definitely shows on the grass when you’re able to hit and move and hit a good shot behind your movement.
WTA Insider: You didn’t drop a set. Pretty dominating week for you en route to the title. Did it look easier than it actually was?
Vandeweghe: Actually it was funny. Craig told me I didn’t lose a set and I was like “Oh, really? OK.” It wasn’t anything special. It was actually really not such an easy tournament for me mentally. I wasn’t mentally engaged for some matches and other matches I was. My second round match against Nao Hibino, honestly I went out there and I was just like I don’t want to play tennis today. It was just like that.
I think like everyone they show up to work and I don’t feel like working today. It happens to everybody and it’s just getting through those moments definitely I think are stepping stones to making yourself not only a better player but a better person out there on the tennis court. So it was day-by-bay, match-by-match, it was just trying to survive myself sometimes.
WTA Insider: How much of that is you just wake up on the wrong side of the bed, or that you’re thinking of other things? Are you able to isolate why you might feel like that on any given day?
Vandeweghe: Sometimes it is something maybe at home that happened the day before, during the tournament, or maybe it’s something to do with nothing completely relevant to tennis. For me it wasn’t any of those. I was just honestly a crabby person this week (laughs).
It was nothing going on at home. My mom was sending me videos of my puppy swimming in the pool and dumb things like that. My sister sent me pictures of her new haircut. So it wasn’t like I was getting any bad news at home or someone broke up with me. I was just a crabby person this week. I don’t know.
WTA Insider: It seems to have worked out Ok for you.
Vandeweghe: Yeah. It was actually nice to get on the court and play and compete. I used the fire that I had. Usually outside the court I’m pretty chill and happy go lucky, I guess you could say, maybe not openly in your face but definitely a relaxed individual.
But I think I used the piss and vinegar that I had in my stomach of just I’m so mad at today and the clouds being out, or the sky being blue, or whatever the reason was and transferred it to the court and just dismantled people at times.
WTA Insider: There was a swagger, an edge to you this week. Did you feel that?
Vandeweghe: Yes. It helps when you have confidence going into a tournament. Comparing the clay court tournaments to my grass court tournament season last year to this year, or even in previous years, there’s just no comparison. I excel on the grass. I excel on the hard courts. I haven’t figured out a scenario when I excel on the clay, which is something I’m always going to be battling with.
It’s not easy to play on your least favorite surface where you’re not rewarded for your good play. Or your good shots. You have to start over and rebuild the point. Here on the grass and hard courts it’s pretty simple. I get rewarded for what I do well and my game translates extremely well to both surfaces.
I felt confident after my first round match. I was super nervous going into my first round match. I was thinking about the wrong things, like I had such great results on grass and I have to keep it up and compete again. I put so pressure on myself to do well that I was really quite nervous in my first round match.
And also playing a local wildcard you don’t know what type of player they’re going to be. If they’re going to rise to the occasion of playing in front of their home crowd and just play out of their minds, or they’re actually a really good player, or if they’re going to crumble in the occasion. I’ve experienced it all in front of my own home crowd so you never know what’s going to happen.
So after I battled through that first round match it was just focusing on simple things. I mean, I played simple, stupid tennis, and that’s all it took to win.
WTA Insider: Do you have family in The Netherlands?
Vandeweghe: My family is actually in Belgium. I’m not Dutch. They came out yesterday for the semifinal. I saw some uncles, they drove their motorcycles from Belgium. I feel like I get a good welcome from the Dutch fans not only because I won the title but either they think I’m Dutch or the Belgians claim me for the week. I’ll take it either way. I’ll take the support.
WTA Insider: Different players react to winning a title differently. Either it relaxes them because it validates to them they’re playing good tennis, or it creates more pressure because the expectations are higher. How do you feel about it?
Vandeweghe: I mean I only have two other moments to build off of. I made the final in Stanford and I completely over-expected so much of myself immediately. I guess I got beat up a little bit afterwards. I went to the San Diego tournament straight after and got smoked first round and then I believe I didn’t play again until the US Open where I played Serena again int eh first round and I got absolutely trounced.
I mean the pressure I put on myself, Ok I made a final I should make another final the next week, I was just wet behind the ears and didn’t realize each tournament is different. There’s different adversities you face, there’s different highs, there’s different lows, you have to take it day by day. That’s kind of the fun thing about different tournaments and tennis in general. You play a different opponent every single day and whether it’s yourself or someone else who is your opponent that day, it changes.
The last time I won this title, I went immediately to Wimbledon and beat Muguruza again. And then the next round it all hit me of I just won a title, I’m tired, and everything like that, and I wasn’t able to nor did I have the experience to find it within myself to just manage through the match. That was my own fault.
But I think this tournament is in a different place. It’s the first tournament of the grass court season, so there’s two more tournaments ahead with Birmingham and Eastbourne. Who knows what will happen. But the big tournament you have to be ready for, that we’re all building towards, is Wimbledon. That’s what you have to focus on, how you’re going to be best prepared for Wimbledon.
WTA Insider: So are you leaving on a train or plane tonight to Birmingham?
Vandeweghe: Heck no. I’m going tomorrow morning on a plane. I can’t get up. I didn’t know if the rain was going to hold, I didn’t want to book a ticket and then cancel it and eat a bunch of money. So I was like I’ll go the next day on Monday. It’s kind of tour life I guess you could say.
WTA Insider: You win a title and in a couple of days you’re going to play top seed Agnieszka Radwanska in Birmingham. Such is life.
Vandeweghe: And worrying about baggage fees that I have coming up. (Laughs).
Listen to more of Vandeweghe’s post-match thoughts in the latest episode of the WTA Insider Podcast:
– Photos courtesy of Edwin Verhoef, Ricoh Open.
