Jasmine Paolini shows optimism about her Australian Open chances after an ‘unexpected’ 2024 season
World No.4 Jasmine Paolini breezed past unseeded player Sijia Wei in the first round of the Australian Open.
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Jasmine Paolini (Image via X)
Jasmine Paolini started her Australian Open campaign with a bang. On Tuesday (January 14), she breezed past Sijia Wei 6-0, 6-4 inside the Margaret Court Arena to secure a place in the second round.
The 29-year-old, who reached the fourth round in singles in last year’s Australian Open, talked about her impressive 2024 season. She won the Dubai Tennis Championships and reached the final of the French Open and Wimbledon.
Her performance in the two Grand Slam events helped her rankings immensely, helping her to qualify for the WTA Finals for the first time in her career. She now hopes to win her first Major in the ongoing event.
Last year was unexpected for sure. It was amazing. But it’s a new year. I’m happy to be back in Australia. Before last year, I never won a match in Melbourne. The first match last year gave me so much confidence. It’s great to be back here. I love the tournament. I love the city. I love the people.
Jasmine Paolini said during her post-match interview
It was Paolini’s first match on the tour since her elimination from the WTA Finals. She chose not to play the Brisbane International or the ASB Classic and instead represented Italy at the United Cup, helping the team reach the quarterfinals.
Jasmine Paolini feels tennis is catching up with soccer in popularity in Italy
Jasmine Paolini and compatriot Sara Errani won multiple doubles titles last year. The pair etched their names on history books when they won the gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
Their victories, plus men’s World No.1 Jannik Sinner‘s achievements, have made tennis more popular in a country where soccer has always been a ‘number one sport’. Paolini, in her column for the BBC, wrote about how fans in Italy reacted when she and Errani won the gold medal.
Now tennis is not far behind catching up with football in popularity. The amount of attention I received started to increase a lot after I reached the French Open singles final last year and again after I did the same at Wimbledon. But I felt the biggest difference after I won a gold medal for Italy in the Olympic doubles. It was crazy when I returned to Italy after Paris.
Jasmine Paolini wrote
Last year, Italy won the Davis Cup as well as the Billie Jean King Cup. Paolini has seen girls calling her ‘idol’ and then there were old ladies who tried ‘kissing’ her. She now hopes to give them more reasons to celebrate in the 2025 season.
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Gouri Das
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