"Mosquito" Sofia Kenin: A career in Sharapova's footsteps
Sofia Kenin received many preliminary laurels - at the Australian Open 2020, she won her first Grand Slam title at the age of 21. Her inspiration: Maria Sharapova.
by Jörg Allmeroth
last edit: Feb 02, 2020, 05:07 pm
Rick Macci has seen many tennis superstars up close, he is one of the most respected and sought-after coaches worldwide. He worked with Maria Sharapova, later with Venus and Serena Williams. And a few years ago, Macci had another student on the square who he was immediately impressed by.
“I noticed right away that it was something extraordinary, an absolute gem,” says Macci, not known for quickly falling into enthusiasm or cheering. The young girl Macci was leading at the time was called Sofia Kenin, the ambitious daughter of a Russian emigrant couple. A girl whose parallels to Maria Sharapova immediately became apparent in her biography. “Sofia is just as driven, as hungry, as performance-conscious as Maria,” says 65-year-old Macci, “you never know what will happen at a young age. But she had everything to become a Grand Slam winner - and number 1. ”
Kenin: "A dream has come true"
With the top spot on the world rankings, it will take some time. But the native of Moscow with a US passport already has one of the four big titles, a Grand Slam Cup, in her possession. With agile legs, great wit and fighting passion, the 21-year-old American stormed to a well-deserved 4: 6, 6: 2, 6: 2 final victory at the Australian Open against Garbine Muguruza on Saturday. "A dream came true. I am extremely proud of this achievement, ”said Kenin, thanking above all her father Alexander Kenin, who once decided to move the family to America.
As a taxi driver and with other odd jobs, Daddy Kenin struggled for a long time to get the family home - the American dream, a modern dishwasher-millionaire story for the Kenins, had come true, Down Under in Melbourne, at the Center Court of the Rod Laver Arena. It wasn't Serena Williams with her potentially 24th Grand Slam record title, nor teenage Cori Gauff with her first major coup that made the headlines, but the small, big fighter Sofia Kenin. This wiry, fat, energetic athlete, about whom Macci, the top coach, once said that she was like a "mosquito" on the pitch: "She is there all the time, just always, and annoys you."
"Maria's ascent has always inspired me"
Kenin fits into a list of surprising winners of recent years in the opaque, whimsical power game in women's tennis - no one knows how sustainably she can hold her own in the fight for the big titles. But in her professional attitude, in her ambition and in her work ethic, she already reminds the young Sharapova. “Maria's ascent has always inspired me,” says Kenin. Kenin makes no compromises when it comes to her demanding job, she wants to "make optimal and sensible use of every minute of training," says the 21-year-old. She had set herself high goals early on, and she hadn't lost sight of those goals when the transition from junior tennis to the world of the big traveling circus became complicated.
Kenin was number 2 globally in the junior hit list, but little was heard of her at first from the adults. “But I never put it on and always believed in myself,” says Kenin, “I am not someone who expects miracles. I was ready for the long way. ”Now, after the Australian Open, she moved up into the top ten for the first time, as the new number 7 in the WTA pecking order.
Kenin is still a long way from the coolness and dominance of her big colleague Sharapova. Kenin on the Center Court - it is a very special natural event. A single rant, swear, cheer, triumph, lament. Throwing clubs and talking to yourself, euphoria and disappointment, glamor and sometimes misery. When it counts, however, it is always there, gripping and determined. "There are players who are afraid of the big points," says Tracy Austin, once number 1 in women's tennis, "she is just waiting for it. She loves that. "His daughter always has enough energy, says father Alexander," you don't have to motivate her, you have to slow it down. "
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