“I’m really confident” – Sofia Kenin opens up on her mentality ahead of Dubai Open

Reigning Australian Open champion Sofia Kenin said she feels confident ahead of her matches at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship, more popularly known as the Dubai Open

The Dubai Tennis Championship is the third tournament in pro tennis history to award equal prize money for both men and women.

21-year-old Kenin has had a sensational start to her career, having won her maiden Grand Slam title in Australia and having played a crucial role in USA’s win over Latvia in the Federation Cup Qualifiers recently.

Kenin is one of the main highlights of the tournament which features as many as six players from the top-ten WTA rankings. The young American, who is currently ranked 7^th in the world and seeded 5^th in the tournament seemed relaxed ahead of her matches.

She brought back memories from her Australian Open win before stating that she wished to keep up that momentum when she plays in Dubai.

“I’m really confident. I feel like it was a match that I will never forget. I was super super excited to have won and I am going to do my best to keep the momentum coming here and love the vibe very much,” Kenin said.

“It’s really a privilege to be here as a defending champion”

Meanwhile, defending champion Belinda Bencic shunned away all doubts, saying she considered the opportunity to play in the tournament as a privilege.

“I don’t really get why people always think it’s a pressure for me. It’s really a privilege to be here as a defending champion,” Bencic said. Ranked fourth in the world, Bencic looked at ease and said that she felt she could repeat her good performances from last year.

“I can play well here. Last year I felt great here and that’s why I think I can only do well here this year again,” the Swiss international said.

Two-time champion Elina Svitolina, on the other hand, was of the opinion that she enjoyed playing in the courts in Dubai. Svitolina – a former champion in Dubai back in 2017 and 2018, however, made her entry into the tournament this season as one of the three wild card entrants.

“Just I think I love playing and then under the lights here, the atmosphere. I think lots of Ukrainian fans are coming to support me and that’s also what gives me extra motivation and I’m just happy playing on those courts,” Svitolina said.

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