Kenin learning the ways of being a champion

Dubai - Sofia, all of 21, is already a Grand Slam champion, having won her first one at the Australian Open earlier this month.

Kim Clijsters is the elder stateswoman, so to speak, at this year's 20th running of the WTA Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, and the other end of the spectrum is a young one who is a star in the making.
Sofia Kenin, all of 21, is already a Grand Slam champion, having won her first one at the Australian Open earlier this month.
And while, Belgian Clijsters has been there and done that, Kenin is still figuring it all out. Life has not been the same since the American lifted the trophy Down Under. With it has come the added weight of pressure and expectations but the Russian-born ace is intent on keeping her feet firmly rooted to the ground.
In fact, Kenin revealed that the triumph has meant she has had to put in more of the hard yards.
"It's just more stuff to do. Everything is about the same. I'm still practicing, still working hard. Just going to keep grinding it and hopefully have more of those good results," Kenin said on Sunday.
"It's different, obviously. It's a different pressure. You have more expectations from other people from the outside. For myself, I'm always hard on myself. Every tournament I go to, I obviously want to do well. So it's nothing really different," she added.
The victory had taken time to sink and it was only during the customary photo shoot of the men's and women's champion, that it finally dawned on her that had indeed become a Grand Slam winner.
"I think when I was in the photo shoot, I already figured that I'm a Grand Slam champion. Yeah, super exciting," she giggled.
"I learned about myself a lot of things. Those two weeks really changed my life. I handled everything well, all the pressure well. Obviously, different expectations now, I would say. Hopefully, I can somehow take it easy and not let it get into my head," added Kenin, who moved to the US when she was a young child.
Being feisty is almost second nature to her and Kenin let out a secret that she used to cry even if she lost during practice.
"I had that since I started playing tennis. I always had that," Kenin said about her trait.
"I was competitive. I hated losing. I was always crying when I was losing even in practice. Yeah, I guess I was pretty competitive when I was a little kid," she revealed.
After winning her first Grand Slam of perhaps many more to come, Kenin pampered herself with a Cartier ring and bracelet. "That's it. That's what I wanted," she gushed.
Kenin said there is no secret to her early success, except maybe in believing in oneself.
"There's not much of a secret. I'm playing every match. I'm trying my best. There's not much of a secret. Game-wise not going to say anything because every opponent is different. I cannot give tactics of what I'm doing. I'm just playing my game and just believing in myself. I guess that's the secret," said the world No.7, who takes on Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in the opening round.
james@khaleejtimes.com