Following an Achilles surgery that kept her off the tour much of last spring, 2014 Australian Open runner-up Dominika Cibulkova was ranked as low as No.66 in the world back in January. The once odds-on darkhorse to pull off early upsets was left ruing missed opportunities in Indian Wells and Miami, both times losing to big names like Agnieszka Radwanska and Garbiñe Muguruza from winning positions.
But a title at the Katowice Open turned everything around for the Slovakian dynamo, who roared into her biggest final since Melbourne at the Mutua Madrid Open, and pulled off a second straight win over Radwanska en route to her first grass court title at the Aegon International.
Chatting with WTA Insider less than 24 hours after arriving at the All England Club, Cibulkova discussed the stabilizing influence of her team – one now flanked by a new physio and sports psychologist – and the importance of playing free of expectations, even as the pressure heats up for the latest addition to the Road to Singapore’s Top 8.
WTA Insider: First grass court title for you, back in the Top 20 and the Top 8 on the RTS. Talk about what the title means to you.
Cibulkova: It’s very special because it’s on grass, and I never saw myself as a grass court player. After such a great win in Eastbourne, it gives me a lot of confidence and it feels so good. Yesterday, I was saying, ‘No, I cannot believe that I won such a tough tournament on grass.’ Many top girls played and it was a tough competition, but I managed with all the conditions and everything. It feels so great. Today, I’m a bit tired, so I’m lucky I’m playing on Tuesday so I can have some rest.
WTA Insider: Talk about your relationship with grass. You’re a big hitter and you can hit the ball really flat. So on one level, we’d say you should be dangerous on grass, but what was your feeling about it?
Cibulkova: Before, I’d made the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and that was my first ‘something’ on grass, so after I thought, ‘Come on, I can play on this.’ Then, I played some third rounds and it was fine, but I didn’t have expectations for grass because I didn’t feel at home. That’s why I came to Eastbourne this year.
My coach told me, ‘Domi, every grass court match you play before Wimbledon will be good, so relax and play your game.’ We practiced just five days on grass, and that was a really good warm-up for me, and I was playing so well from the first round. It’s not easy to play against the taller girls who have such big serves like Pliskova. But I managed to play against them, and even beat them. I think my game improved a lot from the last few years; my serve and return improved, and those are the most important things on grass.
WTA Insider: What was it about grass that made you uncomfortable?
Cibulkova: At most, you really only have two or three tournaments on grass, and one is Wimbledon. You never get to practice on grass, so it’s not usual. For me, it’d be like one big question, ‘How will it be?’ It’s not like, I want to come here and do well, because I’ve trained and feel good. It’s more like, ‘I came here and, ok, we’ll see what’s going to happen.’
WTA Insider: A lot of players talk about the movement being the primary source of discomfort on grass; is that also the case for you?
Cibulkova: I don’t have this problem, but I know what you’re talking about because it’s very different and very difficult to move on grass. But everything is different: the bounce of the ball, very short rallies. It’s different tennis than any other surface.
WTA Insider: The first set of the final against Pliskova went back and forth, very tough to call. How were you able to pull that out?
Cibulkova: It was so difficult and so windy, so it was really tough to play. I made some unforced errors in the first few games because I was thinking about the wind and how it’s so hard to play, that it’s not nice tennis and I don’t feel comfortable on the court. My couch came and said, ‘Domi, don’t worry about the wind, just focus on the game,’ and from there I was serving much better. The most important ganme was 4-2 in the second set, when she had some break points to come back. That was the game where I won the match, because had I lost it, it might have gone quickly the other way around. But I was playing free and was really enjoying it.
WTA Insider: Did you come into Wimbledon this morning?
Cibulkova: No, we drove last night; it’s just a one and half hour drive, so it was fine. I’ve never had a good experience playing too long at a tournament the week before because I like to practice at the Grand Slam for a few days. But I cannot complain; I just won a tournament, so it’s going to be good, for sure.
WTA Insider: What is it like being back here? Does it bring any specific memories up for you, or is it different having just won a tournament?
Cibulkova: I’d never won a tournament the week before a Grand Slam, so of course, it’s a little bit different because of all the emotions and then, from one day to the other, you have to be focused on another big thing. It’ll be a little bit different this year, but I’m sure I’ll handle it good. I have a very tough opponent in the first round; I played [Lucic-Baroni] here once and it was a very tough match, so I’m prepared to have another tough one on Tuesday.
WTA Insider: Do you remember the first grass court match you ever played?
Cibulkova: No, I think it was in Roehampton when I played juniors, but I don’t remember that.
WTA Insider: So grass really does sound like a short, specific time of the season.
Cibulkova: Exactly, it’s just two-three weeks, maximum, during the year. We never used to have a grass court at home, and it was always something so different.
WTA Insider: Stepping back a little bit, let’s talk about your season. In the last 12 months, you’re pretty much almost where you were when you left off. That has to be an incredibly satisfying feeling.
Cibulkova: It is. It’s what motivates me, because I was working really hard after that, and it wasn’t easy to come back. I was around No.60 or No.70 in the world, and facing top players in the first round because you’re not seeded. You really have to play well to get back to where you were before, and I think that’s the hardest part. If you can manage that, then I think it shows you’re a good player.
WTA Insider: What was the most important thing to get back; was it just a matter of getting the game back together, or was it mental?
Cibulkova: It was everything all together. Physically, I was working out even when I was injured, at the gym almost every day. But I lost some matches to players I didn’t think I’d lose to, and sometimes it was tough. You start to think you want to come back, but this isn’t where you should be, or that you should have a better ranking. It doesn’t go that fast, so when I stopped thinking like that and just playing, really focused on tennis, it all came together.
WTA Insider: Do you feel you’re playing better now than before the injury?
Cibulkova; Yes. I would say tennis is very mental, and I started working with a mental coach. Actually, before my operation, I started working with him, and I’ve seen it really help me. It’s not like I talk with him once a week on the phone and he tells me what to do; it’s not easy like that. I realized that I have to work on this side, like regular practice.
We have mental training sessions, and we work that way also with my coach in practices. It’s something that’s helped a lot. Now I realize everything I’m doing on the court, and I’m doing it with purpose. I don’t lose my emotions so much. I’m not saying it’ll be like this all the time because nothing is perfect, but I hope to keep it like this as long as I can.
WTA Insider: Talk a little bit about your team, because obviously your coach is always there, your boyfriend/fiance is also always around. We see them all the time. That must be very nice to have a traveling team with you, to give you more stability.
Cibulkova: It is. For me, this is the most important thing. Now we have a new physio on the team as well, and we’re all having a really good time. We all live and work for me to be good, so it’s very nice.
WTA Insider: What do they do for you to be good?
Cibulkova: It’s personal, and not business. They care. When we’re at tournaments, we go for dinner together and spend almost all our free time together. It’s very nice. We can talk about everything because we’re like a family.
WTA Insider: I saw a quote that came out of Eastbourne that you had posters of the Spice Girls on your wall, and not tennis players.
Cibulkova: Yes! They were asking me who motivated me to play tennis growing up. I said, ‘I have to tell you that I never had any athletes on my wall, just Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys.’
WTA Insider: Do you still listen to the Spice Girls?
Cibulkova: No, I like more Rihanna (laughs). She’s like the new Spice Girls!
WTA Insider: You’re on the Top 8 on the RTS. What would it mean for you to qualify?
Cibulkova: Right now I’m not thinking about it because in 2014 I was very close, and that’s what made me very intense and want it too much. I was over-motivated and it didn’t happen. So, I’m not thinking about it. It’s really far and I want to learn from my mistakes and really enjoy what I’m doing on the court. I’m really happy right now on the court, and when I’m playing free is when I’m at my best.
WTA Insider: It seems like you’ve learned to let go over the last 12 months, the concept of wanting something too much was holding you back.
Cibulkova: Yes, exactly. I realized that, even if I hadn’t won Eastbourne, when I woke up this morning, it’d be the same. It’s nice, but life goes on. I have a great boyfriend, family, friends, and I’ve already done a lot in my career. I want to be stressed so much because it’s not helping. It’s easy to say, but not easy to do. This week I was able to do it, and I played well.
All photos courtesy of Getty Images.
