Google News Caroline Garcia: I wish it would be better, I didn't feel good or completely relaxed
by DZEVAD MESIC
Reigning WTA Finals champion Caroline Garcia admits she is not really happy with her results at the start of the 2023 season but she believes she identified what was causing her problems. After a stunning second half of the 2022 season, Garcia was hoping to become a Grand Slam champion at the Australian Open.
At Melbourne Park, Garcia made the round-of-16 before suffering a surprise defeat to Magda Linette. Garcia also has a runner-up finish in Lyon and quarterfinal appearances in Adelaide 2 and Doha. "I wish it would be better, better results in the beginning of the year.
I didn't feel very good on court. I didn't really feel like playing my game completely free, completely relaxed, completely like letting things go. It's definitely something we were working on since a week. We want to stop comparing to how things were last year, full of confidence, full of playing I don't know how many matches," Garcia admitted, per Yahoo Sports.
Garcia aiming to bounce back in Dubai
This past week, Garcia made the Doha quarterfinal before losing to Maria Sakkari. Now, Garcia is set to compete in Dubai, where she is the fourth-seeded player and has a first-round bye at the tournament.
In the Dubai second round, Garcia will play against Madison Keys, who defeated Jasmine Paolini in the first round. When Garcia and Keys meet in Dubai, it will be the fifth meeting between the two. In 2014, Garcia claimed a straight-set win over Keys at the Billie Jean King Cup.
Two years later, Keys got her first win over Garcia as she beat the Frenchwoman in Wuhan. At the 2018 Australian Open, Keys again beat Garcia in straight sets. Their fourth meeting came last year as Garcia beat Keys in front of her home fans at the French Open. It remains to be seen if Garcia can kick off her Dubai campaign with a notable win over Keys.