Zeynep Sönmez is showing rapid improvement, according to her coach Issam Jellali.
The Tunisian coach, who began working with the Turkish tennis player this year, says Sönmez isn’t afraid to face even the highest-ranked players.
Preparation for the Clay Season
Jellali highlighted the preparation period in Istanbul for the ongoing clay season. He noted that Sönmez spent roughly 10 days adjusting to the surface. “She wasn’t very comfortable playing on this surface before. But she is improving and I hope she will get better every season, every tournament,” Jellali stated.
Expectations and Goals for Sönmez
Assessing expectations for the Roma tournament and the clay season, Jellali said, “As a coach, and I think from a player’s perspective as well, we always have great hopes and great goals. So our primary goal is to improve every week, to become better and stronger.”
Jellali believes Sönmez is ready to compete fiercely with any opponent. “There are things we need to work on right now, but even with our current situation, we are ready to compete with any player. That is, we are not afraid to play with the top 10 or top 3 players. We believe we can compete with them. We try to go as far as possible in every tournament. We proceed match by match, but the further we go, the better,” he said.
Areas for Development
Jellali emphasised that Zeynep Sönmez is ready to challenge anyone, and he shares that belief. He added: “This is the most important thing. You know, tennis is both a physical and a mental sport. We are trying to bring all of these together. In addition, there are some points that we are trying to improve technically. There are many things we need to improve. We need to improve her serve, forehand, and backhand even more. So there is work in every area of her game. This is actually a very good thing because the more we improve, the higher level we can play.”
Comparison to Ons Jabeur
Reflecting on the hopes surrounding Zeynep Sönmez in Turkish tennis, Jellali drew a parallel to his previous experience with Ons Jabeur. “I will always do my best. I had a similar situation before with my former player, Ons Jabeur. She was the hope of a country, even a continent. This is a great responsibility, but it is also a good challenge for me,” Jellali noted.