Katie Boulter is so eager to build on her successes of this season that she will forgo a holiday and get straight back in the gym.
The 27-year-old capped a breakthrough year in which she won a first WTA Tour title and reached the top 50 by leading Great Britain to victory over Sweden in the Billie Jean King Cup in London.
Boulter cited her biggest achievement, though, as simply playing a full season having been beset by injuries and illness throughout her career so far.
Top of the Leicestershire player’s objectives is therefore trying to ensure the same is true for 2024, but she also has her sights set on being seeded at grand slams and proving she belongs at the top of the game.
“I’ve got a few different goals in my mind,” she said. “I want to build on this year, I really want to get my feet inside the line, which I already have but now I’ve got to stay there, I’ve got to win these matches week in, week out, beating the top girls.
“You reach your goal and you think you’d be satisfied but you’re not even close. I’m already looking at the next milestone, I want to be seeded in slams, that’s my next stop. I want to be constantly in the top 50, I want to be pushing those boundaries.
“No matter how happy I might be with my year, I actually think it fuels me even more and makes me hungrier going into next year because it’s given me a lot of belief that I belong at this level and I genuinely see and think that I can climb up the rankings but I also know there’s a lot of hard work to be done.
“I’ve got to pace myself but I want to be back in the gym, I want to be bullet-proofing my body as quickly as possible, taking the least amount of days off that I possibly can.”
Her new season will begin before the year is out at the United Cup, a mixed international team competition in Australia that will see Boulter go head-to-head against her Australian boyfriend Alex De Minaur.
She said: “We respect each other as competitors and also off the court as well. I’m sure we’ll talk about it when we get a little closer to it but we’re both going to put our heart on the line for our countries. I know he’s country proud, I know I’m country proud, so we’ll see if we’re still together by the end of it!”
Sweden were among the weakest opposition Britain could have faced, and a nightmare debut for Jodie Burrage, which left them having to come from behind to secure a 3-1 victory, was the obvious negative of the weekend.
Captain Anne Keothavong does have experienced players in her ranks, though, and Harriet Dart proved a solid pair of hands when she replaced Burrage on Sunday to wrap up the tie.
Both Burrage and Boulter have had the best seasons of their careers and sit in the top 100, leaving the national picture looking rosier than a period in the spring when there were no British women in double figures.
Keothavong hopes there will soon be competition, as well, from a crop of highly promising teenagers.
Isabelle Lacy, 17, was at the Copper Box as a hitting partner while there is real excitement around the futures of 14-year-old Hannah Klugman and 16-year-old Mingge Xu, who led Britain’s Junior Billie Jean King Cup team to the semi-finals last week, and another 14-year-old, Mika Stojsavljevic.
“The more of you competing at that highest level, the better,” said Keothavong. “You’re going to push each other, and it’s not just (these players).
“We’ve got Mimi Xu and Hannah Klugman, the girls did really well this week, and they’ve shown lots of promise over the last few weeks, scoring some good wins.
“I know they’re limited (by age) with the number of tournaments they can play but their level is up there and I think that’s really exciting for women’s tennis. We’ve got competition for places on this team and we’ve got players with experience who know how it works, but there’s no guarantee for anyone.”
Djokovic relieved to pass Michelsen test in Shanghai
Novak Djokovic was relieved to edge past Alex Michelsen at the Shanghai Masters as his quest for a 100th career title got up and running.
Djokovic, who has won the tournament in China on four occasions, needed almost two hours to overcome his American opponent on Saturday, eventually doing so 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (11-9).
The Serbian's slow start was punished by Michelsen, who raced into a 4-1 lead in the opening set, with Djokovic managing just three points from the first three games.
But the 24-time grand slam champion rallied to take the first set to win his 11th tie-break from the 15 he has played this season.
"It was the first match against Alex and I also hadn't played in a while, so it took me a little time to get the rust off," said Djokovic after his first match sine the US Open.
“He started off terrifically; big serves and an aggressive style of tennis, he's not afraid to step it up and take it to his opponent."
Djokovic then led 4-1 in the second, only to allow Michelsen back into the contest, but the Serbian held his nerve in the decisive tie-break, saving two set points to advance.
The 37-year-old has now won 35 of the 40 matches he has contested at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Shanghai - more than any other player.
Djokovic is also the only player in history (since 1990) to win all nine ATP Masters 1000 titles, a feat he has achieved twice on his way to a record 40 titles at this level.
He is yet to reach a final in the series this year, with the Serbian acknowledging the difficulties he faced against his American opponent.
"I was 4-1 up, 15/40, and he hit the net-cord that went over. It could easily have been 6-1 for me in the second,” Djokovic said.
"But at this level, things can change very quickly.
"It was a very close encounter and I thought a high level of tennis in both sets. I'm just glad to keep calm when it mattered in the second-set tie-break.
"I'm glad to really be challenged by a young player, and I'm looking forward to the next one."
Up next for Djokovic is either Italian Flavio Cobolli or wildcard Stan Wawrinka.
Djokovic recovers from slow start to move past Michelsen on Shanghai return
Novak Djokovic marked his Shanghai Masters return with a hard-fought straight-sets win over Alex Michelsen.
The four-time champion, who is appearing in this event for the first time since 2019, required two tie-breaks before prevailing 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (11-9) in just under two hours.
Djokovic, still donning a protective sleeve over his right knee, made a slow start in only his second match since losing to Alexei Popyrin in the US Open third round, winning just four points in the first three games as he fell 4-1 behind.
However, the 24-time major winner broke back in the seventh game before dominating the tie-break for first blood.
Roles were reversed in the second set as Michelsen cancelled out an earlier break in game seven.
However, the American squandered two set points to level and was eventually punished by Djokovic, who will play either 28th seed Flavio Cobolli or three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka in the next round.
Data Debrief: Djokovic continues American dominance
Djokovic was given an early scare, but his experience eventually showed as he came through.
Including team events, the Serb has now won his last 33 ATP-level matches against American opponents, with his last such defeat coming against Sam Querrey at Wimbledon in 2016.
The 24-time major winner also demonstrated his determination when the pressure intensified, and he has now come through 12 of his 16 tie-breaks played this season.
Gauff fights back to beat Badosa in China Open semi-finals
Coco Gauff recovered from a set and a break down to reach the China Open final with a 4-6 6-4 6-2 victory over Paula Badosa on Saturday.
Having given up an early break in the opener, Gauff got one of her own by converting her eighth break point in a mammoth eighth game featuring 10 deuces, only for Badosa to hit back immediately to go a set up.
Gauff lost serve immediately in the second set to go on the back foot, only to level the match with back-to-back breaks, the second of them to love.
The decider began with a series of breaks, Gauff taking two of them as the momentum swung her way, then she protected her lead all the way to reach her first final since winning January's Auckland Open.
The 20-year-old is the youngest player to reach the women's singles final at the China Open since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010.
She has fought from a set down to win in each of her last three matches, the first time she has done so in her career. She is the first player to do so in WTA-1000 events since Iga Swiatek at Indian Wells 2022.
Data Debrief: Gauff brings up century
Saturday's match was Gauff's 100th at WTA 1000-level events, and her 67th such victory.
Among American players, only Serena Williams (87), Venus Williams and Jessica Pegula (70) have bettered her 67 wins through their first 100 matches at such events.
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