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.”
Sinner guides Italy to back-to-back Davis Cup triumphs
Jannik Sinner capped his outstanding year by helping Italy retain the Davis Cup, beating Tallon Griekspoor to ensure Italy downed the Netherlands 2-0 in Sunday's final.
World number one Sinner overcame Griekspoor 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 after Matteo Berrettini had registered a 6-4 6-2 win over Botic van de Zandschulp in the opener.
Sinner saved the only two break points of the first set as Griekspoor put up a fight, but the Italian put on a show in the tie-break to inch ahead.
Griekspoor hit back after giving up an early break in the second set, but Sinner immediately responded with two further breaks, with the Dutchman double-faulting for the first then wildly miscuing with a backhand for the second.
Sinner was untroubled from then on, sealing a triumphant end to a spectacular season.
The Italian has only dropped one set throughout that streak, finishing a year that saw him win the Australian Open, US Open and ATP Finals with a 73-6 singles record.
Data Debrief: Sensational Sinner leads the way
This has been a truly remarkable year for Sinner, who has become the first man in the Open Era to win at least one set in every match throughout a season since Roger Federer in 2005.
His victory ensured Italy became the first team to retain the Davis Cup since the Czech Republic triumphed in 2012 and 2013.
Italy also captured the Billie Jean King Cup earlier this week, and they are just the third nation to claim both trophies in the same season in the last 30 years, after the Czech Republic in 2012 and Russia in 2021.
Sinner and Berrettini send defending champions Italy into Davis Cup final
Jannik Sinner's victory over Alex de Minaur clinched Italy's place in another Davis Cup final, with Matteo Berrettini also victorious as the defending champions beat Australia 2-0.
Italy won the Davis Cup for the first time since 1976 last year, and they will have an opportunity to defend their crown against the Netherlands on Sunday.
Former Wimbledon finalist Berrettini got the ball rolling with an entertaining 6-7 (6-8) 6-3 7-5 victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis, not surrendering a break after losing the opener in a tie-break.
That teed up Sinner to close out Italy's victory, with the world number one overcoming De Minaur 6-3 6-4, the same scoreline he beat the Australian by at the ATP Finals earlier this month.
Speaking after his victory in Malaga, Sinner said: "It means a lot. It was a tough encounter, playing Alex. We know each other quite well now, so I have to be very careful every time.
"It's a very tough challenge for me, so I was looking forward to this one. Obviously, it helped a lot that Matteo won the singles today. He played amazing tennis. It was very high quality.
"Hopefully, this can give us some confidence for [Sunday]. It's going to be a very difficult and tough day for us and also the Netherlands."
Data Debrief: Back-to-back for Italy
Italy's men are looking to follow in the footsteps of their female counterparts, who won the Billie Jean King Cup earlier this week.
They are just the third nation in history to make back-to-back finals at both the Davis Cup and the Federation/Billie Jean King Cup, after the United States (1963-64, 1978-79, 1981-82 and 1990-91) and Australia (1963-64 and 1964-65).
Djokovic appoints Murray as coach for Australian Open
Novak Djokovic has announced his long-term former rival Andy Murray as his coach for the Australian Open in 2025.
Murray, a three-time Grand Slam winner, announced his retirement earlier this year and played his final match at the Paris Olympics in August.
He will join Djokovic's team in the off-season and coach him through the opening grand slam of the year, which begins on January 12.
This will be Murray's first coaching role since retiring following a 19-year career.
"We played each other since we were boys. 25 years of being rivals, of pushing each other beyond our limits," Djokovic said in a video on social media.
"We had some of the most epic battles in our sport. They called us game changers, risk-takers, history makers.
"I thought our story may be over - turns out it has one final chapter.
"It's time for one of my toughest opponents to step into my corner. Welcome onboard coach, Andy Murray."
Djokovic failed to win a major title for the first time since 2017, though he did clinch a long-awaited Olympic gold medal in Paris.
The Serb is currently level with Margaret Court for the most major singles titles by any player. He has a good record in Australia though, winning 10 times in Melbourne, beating Murray in four of those finals.
Murray, who beat Djokovic to win the US Open title in 2012 and Wimbledon the following year, says he hopes they can achieve success together.
"I'm going to be joining Novak's team in the off-season, helping him to prepare for the Australian Open," Murray said.
"I'm really excited for it and looking forward to spending time on the same side of the net as Novak for a change, helping him to achieve his goals."
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