WEBVTT - Sam Stosur: how a clay-court sceptic became a Roland Garros finalist

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<v Speaker 1>Hello, and welcome to the Sitdown. I'm Vif Christie, Managing

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<v Speaker 1>editor of Australian Tennis magazine.

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<v Speaker 2>And I'm Matrolope, a writer and editor for oz open

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<v Speaker 2>dot com. And this week we're dipping into our archives

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<v Speaker 2>and going back to one of our earliest episodes of

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<v Speaker 2>the sit Down. Tell us a bit more about that.

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, Matt. In only our fourth episode of the Sitdown,

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<v Speaker 1>we chatted with Sam Stoso, who had recently been appointed

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<v Speaker 1>Australia's Billy Jean King Cup Captain, and we touched on

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<v Speaker 1>some fabulous themes, including the camaraderie between the Australian players,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, her role as a role model, which it's

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<v Speaker 1>sort of taken on unofficially for quite some time, and

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<v Speaker 1>the opportunities in the sport.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and the timing of this episode is quite good

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<v Speaker 2>because not only Will of Australia just played another Billy

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<v Speaker 2>Jean King Cup tie against Great Britain in Melbourne, but

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<v Speaker 2>this is also the week of the WTA event in Stuttgart,

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<v Speaker 2>which we got to talk to Sam about. She had

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<v Speaker 2>great success there and she was able to tell us

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<v Speaker 2>why it's such a favorite stop among players on the tour.

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<v Speaker 1>Sam welcome to the sit down. It's great to be

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<v Speaker 1>talking to you today.

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<v Speaker 3>Thank you very much for having me Sam.

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<v Speaker 1>I thought we'd start with a few questions around Australian tennis.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, we know that you've sort of taken an

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<v Speaker 1>informal role guiding some of the Aussie women over the

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<v Speaker 1>last couple of years as sort of your career wound down.

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<v Speaker 1>How does it feel to be sort of well, well, firstly,

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<v Speaker 1>what inspired that and how does it feel to be

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<v Speaker 1>doing that more formally now?

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<v Speaker 4>Yeah, well, I mean I guess now being in a

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<v Speaker 4>position I'm in, it is more of a formal you know,

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<v Speaker 4>captain coaching, mentoring sort of gig.

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<v Speaker 3>But yeah, certainly, as my career.

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<v Speaker 4>Was going on, I mean I always loved tennis anyway

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<v Speaker 4>in general, and would always like the amount of conversations

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<v Speaker 4>I'd have with different coaches and my coaches and people

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<v Speaker 4>you know about Australian tennis. It was always, you know,

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<v Speaker 4>a really passion, a big passion for me. So as

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<v Speaker 4>I felt like, all right, I can start doing some

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<v Speaker 4>of that and giving some of you know, myself, and

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<v Speaker 4>you you know, the later on I played, I guess

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<v Speaker 4>you sort of become a little less selfish and self

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<v Speaker 4>centered about what you need to do and all that

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<v Speaker 4>sort of stuff. But I just yeah, I've always taken interest.

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<v Speaker 4>So I think our players here there's such a great

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<v Speaker 4>group of people and they try and they give it

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<v Speaker 4>everything to try and you know, whether it's one percent

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<v Speaker 4>more that of information or help or whatever it may

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<v Speaker 4>be to make them that a bit better. I love

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<v Speaker 4>that prospect now. So yeah, being in this role, it's

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<v Speaker 4>really exciting. I was pumped to, you know, get the

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<v Speaker 4>nod and now be able to do it in a

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<v Speaker 4>proper capacity.

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<v Speaker 1>And you know, as as captain, is there any part

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<v Speaker 1>of the role that you sort of weren't anticipating or

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<v Speaker 1>anything that surprised you about the role so far?

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<v Speaker 4>H Well, I mean it's still pretty fresh, but you know, yeah,

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<v Speaker 4>I don't know. We'll see, we'll see. I think there's

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<v Speaker 4>obviously a lot more to it than what I thought.

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<v Speaker 4>It was pretty on the pulse as a player with

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<v Speaker 4>bits and pieces, but certainly in prepping for tires and

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<v Speaker 4>that sort of stuff, there is a whole lot more

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<v Speaker 4>to it than what you definitely realize as a player.

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<v Speaker 4>And I think, yeah, just the whole managing side of

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<v Speaker 4>things to be honest, I've barely been on court, which

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<v Speaker 4>kind of disappoints me.

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<v Speaker 3>A little bit.

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<v Speaker 4>I want to get on court a little bit more

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<v Speaker 4>than what I've been able to so far. So but yeah,

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<v Speaker 4>I guess it's all part of it, and there's you know,

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<v Speaker 4>the role is quite large with the scope of it,

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<v Speaker 4>so just trying to find your feet in all the

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<v Speaker 4>little avenues has been good.

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<v Speaker 1>What's pleasing you the most about Australian women's tennis right now?

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<v Speaker 4>Well, I think the fact that we've got such a

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<v Speaker 4>big group of players, six or seven of them in

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<v Speaker 4>the top one fifty, one sixty. Obviously we want as

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<v Speaker 4>many in the top hundred as we possibly can, but

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<v Speaker 4>if you're not going to be in one hundred, you

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<v Speaker 4>want them as close to as possible. And we do

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<v Speaker 4>have a group that are really knocking on the door. Obviously,

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<v Speaker 4>Arena made it late last year. She's been hanging in

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<v Speaker 4>there just in recent recent weeks. But you know, it

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<v Speaker 4>only takes one extra win in a slightly bigger tournament,

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<v Speaker 4>or you know, you know, you catch a break somewhere

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<v Speaker 4>and then you get yourself in there, you get into

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<v Speaker 4>the main drawer of another event, you win some matches

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<v Speaker 4>and then boom you're off.

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<v Speaker 3>So you know, they're in a.

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<v Speaker 4>It's a tough position to be in right now because

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<v Speaker 4>it's hard to play on all right, am I On

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<v Speaker 4>the WHA Tour and on the challenge of Pro Circuit Tour,

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<v Speaker 4>you sort of in this in and out phase a

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<v Speaker 4>little bit, but you know, full belief in them that

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<v Speaker 4>they're going to be able to make that transition and

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<v Speaker 4>then once we can do that, hopefully, you know, not

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<v Speaker 4>putting pressure on, but hopefully in months to come, we

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<v Speaker 4>can see that group transition from outside of one hundred

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<v Speaker 4>to inside and then hopefully beyond for sure.

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<v Speaker 3>I'm going to ask you to put your WTA hat

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<v Speaker 3>on now. Sam.

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<v Speaker 2>This is the week of the clay court event in Stuttgart,

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<v Speaker 2>which I think has been constantly, like consistently voted by

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<v Speaker 2>the players as like the best five hundred or their

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<v Speaker 2>favorite five tour. I know, and yeah, it's a long

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<v Speaker 2>running event and you played there a couple of times

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<v Speaker 2>and had quite a lot of success at it. I

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<v Speaker 2>just wanted to find out from you, like, yeah, what

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<v Speaker 2>is it like to play that, what makes it so great?

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<v Speaker 2>And why was it always one that was on your schedule?

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<v Speaker 3>So much. Well.

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<v Speaker 4>Once I actually went there, it was always on my schedule,

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<v Speaker 4>but I kind of didn't go there for a while

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<v Speaker 4>because it was the first event sort of on the

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<v Speaker 4>European clay court season, and being in Australia, I would

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<v Speaker 4>have just been to the Middle East, play all through

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<v Speaker 4>the US for five weeks, come home, and so always

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<v Speaker 4>wanted to have like a week or two at home

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<v Speaker 4>before you go again. So I sort of avoided stuck

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<v Speaker 4>up for the early part of my career, and then

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<v Speaker 4>once I got myself into the main drawer, I guess

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<v Speaker 4>played and thought, oh gosh, what have I been doing?

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<v Speaker 3>I love this tournament.

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<v Speaker 4>That was a real mistake, but I think the arenas spectacular.

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<v Speaker 4>They get really great crowds, you know, the hospitality, the

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<v Speaker 4>food we would eat in the main hospitality area with

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<v Speaker 4>all the big sponsors and corporates and stuff, so if

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<v Speaker 4>you wanted to fill at stake for lunch you could

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<v Speaker 4>and whatever. So it was just all laid on, really

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<v Speaker 4>done well, and the court I genuinely loved. I was like,

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<v Speaker 4>if I could ever build a tennis court at my house,

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<v Speaker 4>I would put the indoor clay court from Stiokguart in there.

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<v Speaker 4>So yeah, it was just always a great week.

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<v Speaker 3>You actually you mentioning that court.

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<v Speaker 2>I think I chatted to you last year as like

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<v Speaker 2>a clay court preview and you told me about the

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<v Speaker 2>Stikgart clay and I can't remember exactly what you said,

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<v Speaker 2>but it sounded interesting. You said about the way the

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<v Speaker 2>court is constructed, and it almost Yeah, maybe you can

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<v Speaker 2>tell our listeners like, yeah, because it's not a typical

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<v Speaker 2>or traditional clay court.

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<v Speaker 3>Is it, no one, it's indoors.

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<v Speaker 4>So because it's indoors, they've done there's something in the clay,

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<v Speaker 4>whether it's this special type of oil or something that

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<v Speaker 4>they've created, so that doesn't get dusty, and it doesn't

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<v Speaker 4>dry out too much so you don't water it, but it.

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<v Speaker 3>Keeps its consistency.

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<v Speaker 4>I guess, you know, outdoor clay, when it gets really hot,

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<v Speaker 4>it can get really dry, wind blows, it's all gone.

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<v Speaker 3>Then you've only got the base layer. So yeah, the base.

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<v Speaker 4>I don't know what the base is made out of,

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<v Speaker 4>but it's rock solid, harder than they compact all the

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<v Speaker 4>clay on top. And yeah, it's yeah, really unique because

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<v Speaker 4>it's not too many I guess it's like building a

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<v Speaker 4>roof on win wooden Center court. There's more to it

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<v Speaker 4>than just putting a roof on top and think that

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<v Speaker 4>the grass is going to be fine. It's you know,

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<v Speaker 4>the humidity and everything else plays apart. So however they've

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<v Speaker 4>done it, Yeah, has worked, But so so is it

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<v Speaker 4>quite different? Because you often if you did well in Stitgut,

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<v Speaker 4>you would do well at rolland garros Is. But the

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<v Speaker 4>clay sounds quite different to a traditional like outdoor clay courts.

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<v Speaker 4>So like, was it good preparation at the start of

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<v Speaker 4>your clay court season to kind of get you going,

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<v Speaker 4>because your ultimate goal is always rolling grass the clay season, So, like,

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<v Speaker 4>you know, like was it did it serve its purpose

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<v Speaker 4>in that way?

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<v Speaker 3>Oh? I think so?

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<v Speaker 4>I think. I mean it's a pretty true court. Obviously,

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<v Speaker 4>there's no elements outside, there's no win there's no sun,

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<v Speaker 4>there's no rain to deal with. Often, even like on

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<v Speaker 4>the clay, you'll play in light rain or drizzle sometimes.

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<v Speaker 4>So I think from that respect, you kind of it's

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<v Speaker 4>a nice week to start your season in. I mean

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<v Speaker 4>the tournament to get into you got to be top

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<v Speaker 4>twenty six, twenty eight, thirty depending on the year.

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<v Speaker 3>It has the best cutoff most of any tournament in

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<v Speaker 3>the world.

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<v Speaker 4>It's phenomeno's like the week before a Grand Slam, Like

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<v Speaker 4>it's like what used to be, you know, Sydney Week

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<v Speaker 4>or Adelaide sorry, Adelaide Week Eastbourne before Wimbledon. They get

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<v Speaker 4>the highest basically caliber field they possibly could imagine, So

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<v Speaker 4>ad to get in, you've got to be ranked high.

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<v Speaker 4>You know you're going to be playing quality opponents. So

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<v Speaker 4>that's a great test straight up already, you know, it's

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<v Speaker 4>practice courts, and like I said, just the all round

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<v Speaker 4>feeling of the event is nice, so you can do

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<v Speaker 4>that kind of all right easy way in hopefully play well.

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<v Speaker 4>You know, you never know if you're going to win

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<v Speaker 4>a tournament or not, but do well and then it

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<v Speaker 4>can really set you up. And ended up loving playing

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<v Speaker 4>there because I loved playing on clay, so it was

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<v Speaker 4>an opportunity to play like a full clay court season.

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<v Speaker 4>And it's pretty short, it's not that much longer than

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<v Speaker 4>the grass now, so I wanted every chance possible.

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<v Speaker 3>To be on the surface.

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<v Speaker 2>And you played some amazing players there in your career.

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<v Speaker 2>So you made the final in twenty ten and you

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<v Speaker 2>lost to Justine Enna. You also played a great match

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<v Speaker 2>I think, sorry I'm mentioning your losses, but you played

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<v Speaker 2>Scharup Hoover and it went for like three hours or

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<v Speaker 2>something in the corner finals, and I think you went

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<v Speaker 2>deep another time you played lee Na there bar totally,

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<v Speaker 2>Like these are all Grand Slam champions. What were your

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<v Speaker 2>particular highlights there over the years. Well, I mean, definitely

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<v Speaker 2>playing Justine in the final. That was amazing.

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<v Speaker 4>Like I hadn't had heaps and heaps of experience playing

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<v Speaker 4>with someone like her, and she obviously with her record

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<v Speaker 4>at Roland Garros, was you know, a joke. So playing

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<v Speaker 4>her in the final and managed to win the second

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<v Speaker 4>set and it was, oh yeah, I might have a

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<v Speaker 4>chance here, and they ended up losing at six to one,

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<v Speaker 4>but you know, that was a great experience. And then

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<v Speaker 4>you know what, five weeks later, four weeks later, I

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<v Speaker 4>ended up playing her at the French and beating her

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<v Speaker 4>in three sets. So you know, having had that experience

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<v Speaker 4>a few weeks before, knowing I could match it, you know,

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<v Speaker 4>absolutely helped me then beat her arguably more important tournament

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<v Speaker 4>in Roland Garross. So yeah, that was great. I mean

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<v Speaker 4>I won the doubles there a couple of times and yeah. Again,

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<v Speaker 4>just you could get a Porsche and go for a

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<v Speaker 4>driver around stik Gart. That was pretty fun.

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<v Speaker 3>Well still, gut that sounds we should go there. It

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<v Speaker 3>sounds play for the worlch Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>Sam, you talked about how much you love Stuttgart and

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<v Speaker 1>how much did that impact your love of clay generally

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<v Speaker 1>or your relationship with clay.

0:10:47.320 --> 0:10:51.160
<v Speaker 4>Oh, I mean, well, like I said, it was the

0:10:51.160 --> 0:10:54.400
<v Speaker 4>first real red clay court tournament of the season. I

0:10:54.440 --> 0:10:57.000
<v Speaker 4>would have played in Charleston a number of times on

0:10:57.040 --> 0:10:59.160
<v Speaker 4>the green clay, but it's a little bit different. But once,

0:10:59.240 --> 0:11:01.280
<v Speaker 4>I mean early on in my career, I did not

0:11:01.760 --> 0:11:05.960
<v Speaker 4>like playing on clay whatsoever. It was, you know, so

0:11:06.040 --> 0:11:07.920
<v Speaker 4>foreign to me. My first junior trip when I was

0:11:07.960 --> 0:11:11.400
<v Speaker 4>fifteen in the eighteenth team, I lost first round every week.

0:11:11.760 --> 0:11:13.840
<v Speaker 4>Took me five years to win a match at Roland Garros,

0:11:13.960 --> 0:11:16.760
<v Speaker 4>whether it was through juniors or qualities or Major or

0:11:16.840 --> 0:11:20.880
<v Speaker 4>whatever the case. And I just in anything singles or double.

0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:23.600
<v Speaker 4>So I just couldn't get my head around playing on clay.

0:11:23.600 --> 0:11:24.280
<v Speaker 3>I couldn't move.

0:11:25.520 --> 0:11:29.800
<v Speaker 4>And then eventually, I guess learned about my style of

0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:32.320
<v Speaker 4>tennis and realized, oh, I should be able to play

0:11:32.320 --> 0:11:34.880
<v Speaker 4>on this it could actually work and enhance what I

0:11:35.000 --> 0:11:39.080
<v Speaker 4>do naturally well. And once I could kind of get

0:11:39.080 --> 0:11:41.640
<v Speaker 4>my head around the sliding and the movement and everything else,

0:11:43.000 --> 0:11:45.200
<v Speaker 4>it became my favorite surface. And like, looking back now,

0:11:45.240 --> 0:11:47.520
<v Speaker 4>I wish I'd had a bit more insight to that

0:11:47.640 --> 0:11:50.559
<v Speaker 4>when I was younger, to be able to adapt earlier

0:11:50.559 --> 0:11:53.920
<v Speaker 4>in my career than what I did. But certainly, you know,

0:11:54.000 --> 0:11:57.280
<v Speaker 4>playing a full clay court season was a high priority

0:11:57.320 --> 0:11:59.320
<v Speaker 4>for me once I understood how.

0:11:59.160 --> 0:12:00.160
<v Speaker 3>I could play on it.

0:12:00.520 --> 0:12:04.000
<v Speaker 4>And yeah, I mean, like ultimately the goal was to

0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:06.280
<v Speaker 4>try and win Roland Garros and I fell just short,

0:12:06.320 --> 0:12:10.240
<v Speaker 4>but it was Yeah, that was always one of the

0:12:10.240 --> 0:12:11.600
<v Speaker 4>best times of the season for me.

0:12:12.160 --> 0:12:15.559
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, it was one of the most successful periods of

0:12:15.800 --> 0:12:18.680
<v Speaker 1>your career, of your season. But tell us about the

0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:22.120
<v Speaker 1>European clay court season and how it's different to tennis

0:12:22.160 --> 0:12:22.959
<v Speaker 1>in Australia.

0:12:23.760 --> 0:12:27.520
<v Speaker 4>Well, I mean it's I don't know, like clay court tennis.

0:12:27.559 --> 0:12:29.839
<v Speaker 4>I love watching clay court tennis. I think that again,

0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:33.200
<v Speaker 4>points are longer. You can kind of see the tactics

0:12:33.240 --> 0:12:36.680
<v Speaker 4>playing out, the construction of points. It's not always easy

0:12:36.720 --> 0:12:39.800
<v Speaker 4>to you know, hit winners early on in points, so

0:12:39.840 --> 0:12:42.000
<v Speaker 4>you've got to be willing to grind a little bit

0:12:42.080 --> 0:12:45.520
<v Speaker 4>open up the court, you know, kind of. I guess

0:12:45.520 --> 0:12:47.320
<v Speaker 4>a lot of people might be surprised how many points

0:12:47.360 --> 0:12:50.320
<v Speaker 4>actually finish up at net on clay, because you see

0:12:50.320 --> 0:12:53.240
<v Speaker 4>someone you know pulled out wide and the racket faces open,

0:12:53.280 --> 0:12:56.360
<v Speaker 4>you've got time to knock off a volley. But I

0:12:56.400 --> 0:12:58.840
<v Speaker 4>just love the tactics and like the cat and mouse

0:12:58.960 --> 0:13:01.640
<v Speaker 4>type that.

0:13:01.520 --> 0:13:02.440
<v Speaker 3>The clay creates.

0:13:02.600 --> 0:13:05.880
<v Speaker 4>And you know, even now, like doing some commentary last

0:13:05.920 --> 0:13:08.480
<v Speaker 4>year commentating for Roll and Garro, so I was like, oh,

0:13:08.600 --> 0:13:12.800
<v Speaker 4>that's what I laughed watching it again with you know,

0:13:12.840 --> 0:13:16.000
<v Speaker 4>a purpose of commentary.

0:13:16.160 --> 0:13:16.960
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I don't know.

0:13:16.960 --> 0:13:20.520
<v Speaker 4>I think it is a style and the way that

0:13:20.880 --> 0:13:22.240
<v Speaker 4>I love to watch tennis.

0:13:22.520 --> 0:13:24.839
<v Speaker 1>And what was it about your game that brought out

0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:26.000
<v Speaker 1>your best on clay?

0:13:27.080 --> 0:13:30.960
<v Speaker 4>Well, definitely my heavy top spin on my forehand. I

0:13:31.000 --> 0:13:33.680
<v Speaker 4>was able to use that as a real weapon because

0:13:33.720 --> 0:13:35.400
<v Speaker 4>clay is a little bit slower, so the balls might

0:13:35.440 --> 0:13:37.880
<v Speaker 4>be quick through the air, but obviously landing on the

0:13:37.920 --> 0:13:39.679
<v Speaker 4>clay in the dirt, it kind of holds up on

0:13:39.760 --> 0:13:42.000
<v Speaker 4>the bounce, so I had time to run around my

0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:44.240
<v Speaker 4>backhand a little bit more and use my off forehand,

0:13:44.240 --> 0:13:47.320
<v Speaker 4>which was my favorite shot. Because I hit it with

0:13:47.360 --> 0:13:49.720
<v Speaker 4>heavy spin and a bit higher over than net. Typically

0:13:49.760 --> 0:13:51.920
<v Speaker 4>it's quite bouncy, so I could put the ball in

0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:56.280
<v Speaker 4>difficult positions for my opponents. And then yeah, being able

0:13:56.280 --> 0:13:59.560
<v Speaker 4>to use my kick serve it was great on that

0:13:59.640 --> 0:14:01.960
<v Speaker 4>surfa again, being able to get the height you know

0:14:02.320 --> 0:14:07.559
<v Speaker 4>already kicker doesn't bounce, I guess like a typical sort

0:14:07.600 --> 0:14:09.920
<v Speaker 4>of top spin bounce or a flatter bounce, so you

0:14:09.960 --> 0:14:11.960
<v Speaker 4>could like, you know, it might hit a little funny

0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:13.880
<v Speaker 4>spot on the court. You get that extra little hot

0:14:13.920 --> 0:14:16.480
<v Speaker 4>which was always good. So I guess my two best

0:14:16.480 --> 0:14:20.040
<v Speaker 4>shots my kicker on my forehand. That's what you want

0:14:20.040 --> 0:14:21.640
<v Speaker 4>to be able to use on that surface, and that's

0:14:21.640 --> 0:14:23.440
<v Speaker 4>what I had naturally, and then I was able to

0:14:23.560 --> 0:14:25.840
<v Speaker 4>kind of use that even more so on the clay

0:14:25.920 --> 0:14:26.800
<v Speaker 4>rather than a hardcourt.

0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:31.360
<v Speaker 1>Heading into the clay court season, do you miss competing

0:14:31.400 --> 0:14:32.000
<v Speaker 1>at this time.

0:14:31.880 --> 0:14:32.280
<v Speaker 3>Of the year.

0:14:33.360 --> 0:14:35.200
<v Speaker 4>You know what last year it was with the first

0:14:35.280 --> 0:14:37.640
<v Speaker 4>year I wasn't playing, watching Roland Garriss was kind of

0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:39.320
<v Speaker 4>the first time I was like, oh, it'd be nice

0:14:39.320 --> 0:14:40.520
<v Speaker 4>to be there. Oh it'd be nice to have a

0:14:40.600 --> 0:14:44.960
<v Speaker 4>hit on the clay. So I mean, I mean, obviously

0:14:45.000 --> 0:14:47.560
<v Speaker 4>it's a Grand Slam, and then you know, Wimbledon comes along,

0:14:47.600 --> 0:14:48.440
<v Speaker 4>and then.

0:14:48.240 --> 0:14:49.400
<v Speaker 3>You know everything else.

0:14:49.440 --> 0:14:53.440
<v Speaker 4>So obviously those bigger tournaments always lovely to be part of.

0:14:54.720 --> 0:14:57.960
<v Speaker 4>But yeah, I think it's probably that comes around and

0:14:58.000 --> 0:15:00.000
<v Speaker 4>you're like, oh, I'll just have a hit.

0:15:00.160 --> 0:15:00.920
<v Speaker 3>Let's just go have a hit.

0:15:02.440 --> 0:15:04.960
<v Speaker 2>You said something earlier about eventually you worked out that

0:15:05.000 --> 0:15:09.040
<v Speaker 2>your game suits it. Did a coach say to you, Sam,

0:15:09.480 --> 0:15:11.000
<v Speaker 2>you could be great on this surf's or was that

0:15:11.040 --> 0:15:12.680
<v Speaker 2>just a realization you had yourself.

0:15:13.440 --> 0:15:16.440
<v Speaker 4>I don't remember a specific conversation with anyone or anything,

0:15:16.440 --> 0:15:20.400
<v Speaker 4>but absolutely working with Dave at that point in my career,

0:15:20.640 --> 0:15:24.640
<v Speaker 4>he yeah, he definitely would have kind of whether he

0:15:25.040 --> 0:15:27.960
<v Speaker 4>said it as blatant as that, or kind of work

0:15:28.040 --> 0:15:30.320
<v Speaker 4>the practices and things for them me to eventually work

0:15:30.320 --> 0:15:32.320
<v Speaker 4>it out myself. I can't remember exactly how it all

0:15:32.320 --> 0:15:37.760
<v Speaker 4>played out, but yeah, it certainly was. I think a

0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:40.520
<v Speaker 4>big part of working with him that it was like, Okay.

0:15:40.720 --> 0:15:41.760
<v Speaker 3>These are your best shots.

0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:46.320
<v Speaker 4>This surface can help you create those shots more often

0:15:46.600 --> 0:15:50.680
<v Speaker 4>and use it to create more spear or bounce, whatever

0:15:50.680 --> 0:15:51.360
<v Speaker 4>it may be.

0:15:53.200 --> 0:15:54.160
<v Speaker 3>You can do well here.

0:15:54.360 --> 0:15:56.400
<v Speaker 4>And then yeah, you work on your movement about it,

0:15:56.440 --> 0:15:58.480
<v Speaker 4>and you know, put the time in and the effort,

0:15:58.560 --> 0:16:03.480
<v Speaker 4>and I've said it plenty of times before, Like you

0:16:03.520 --> 0:16:05.960
<v Speaker 4>get a couple of wins here and there, you know,

0:16:06.160 --> 0:16:09.200
<v Speaker 4>in a more of an uncomfortable situation, and all of

0:16:09.200 --> 0:16:12.040
<v Speaker 4>a sudden you start believing, Oh, it's not so uncomfortable anymore.

0:16:12.080 --> 0:16:14.080
<v Speaker 4>So I think it just took time for me to

0:16:14.440 --> 0:16:18.239
<v Speaker 4>understand my tennis how to use it. And then yeah,

0:16:18.680 --> 0:16:21.760
<v Speaker 4>get over that five year loss of matches.

0:16:21.400 --> 0:16:23.640
<v Speaker 3>On the surface and you're like, oh, this isn't so bad.

0:16:24.920 --> 0:16:25.240
<v Speaker 3>I can't.

0:16:25.320 --> 0:16:27.440
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, the extreme in going from not being able to

0:16:27.480 --> 0:16:29.480
<v Speaker 2>win a match to it being like your most productive

0:16:29.520 --> 0:16:32.320
<v Speaker 2>and successful surface and favorite. Like actually listening to you

0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:34.120
<v Speaker 2>talk about it, it sounds like you have quite like

0:16:34.120 --> 0:16:36.320
<v Speaker 2>a romantic relationship with Cliente says, Oh, I love it.

0:16:36.360 --> 0:16:38.160
<v Speaker 2>I love the points, Like there's a beauty about Clay

0:16:38.240 --> 0:16:41.360
<v Speaker 2>Gontennis that you've seem to really love. It's surprising you've

0:16:41.440 --> 0:16:43.800
<v Speaker 2>ended up there after how your relationship with it.

0:16:43.960 --> 0:16:46.800
<v Speaker 4>So absolutely Yeah, No, if you ask me that when

0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:47.880
<v Speaker 4>I was fifteen or six.

0:16:48.040 --> 0:16:49.080
<v Speaker 3>You've got a big joking.

0:16:50.400 --> 0:16:53.160
<v Speaker 1>Fantastic. Well, it's been great to talk to you today, Sam.

0:16:53.240 --> 0:16:55.880
<v Speaker 4>Thank you for your time, no problem, Thanks for having me.

0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:00.840
<v Speaker 1>Well, Matt, I hope there were a lot of young

0:17:00.880 --> 0:17:03.520
<v Speaker 1>players listening to that interview because there were so many

0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:08.199
<v Speaker 1>incredible lessons to take from Sam, including her persistence and patience.

0:17:08.280 --> 0:17:10.320
<v Speaker 1>You know, she went from never being able to play

0:17:10.320 --> 0:17:13.840
<v Speaker 1>on clay. Sorry, she went from not being able to

0:17:13.840 --> 0:17:15.880
<v Speaker 1>play on clay when she first started out to going

0:17:15.920 --> 0:17:17.480
<v Speaker 1>on to reach a Roland Garross final.

0:17:17.640 --> 0:17:19.959
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, it was amazing how she kind of redefined her

0:17:20.000 --> 0:17:21.920
<v Speaker 2>relationship with the surface and went on to be one

0:17:21.920 --> 0:17:24.879
<v Speaker 2>of Australia's greatest players on clay. So awesome to hear

0:17:24.920 --> 0:17:27.320
<v Speaker 2>that journey for her. And we'll be back next week

0:17:27.320 --> 0:17:29.840
<v Speaker 2>with another episode of the sit Down. Please remember to

0:17:29.840 --> 0:17:32.120
<v Speaker 2>subscribe so you never miss an episode when it lands

0:17:32.119 --> 0:17:34.040
<v Speaker 2>in your feed, and if you could leave us a

0:17:34.119 --> 0:17:35.760
<v Speaker 2>rating are of you, we'd love that too.

0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:37.720
<v Speaker 3>See you next week, Viv See then, Matt,