Google News Karolina Pliskova details 'quite crazy' 24 hours between winning Cluj & reaching Doha
by DZEVAD MESIC
Karolina Pliskova, 31, described the process she went through between Sunday and Monday as "quite crazy" as the Czech tennis star competed in two different tournaments and changed three different cities.
On Sunday, former world No. 1 Pliskova started her Cluj-Napoca final around 4:30 pm local time and sealed a 6-4 6-3 win in just less than an hour and a half of play. Shortly after the final, Pliskova hopped on a private jet to Istanbul, from where she took a flight to Doha.
After catching a bit of sleep on the plane, Pliskova managed to get about three hours of sleep when she landed in Doha. Less than 24 hours after winning her Cluj-Napoca final in Romania, Pliskova returned to the court to play her Doha first-round match in Qatar. Down by a set and coming off crazy 24 hours, Pliskova created a very impressive comeback to beat this year's Australian Open quarterfinalist Anna Kalinskaya 2-6 7-6 (3) 6-4.
On Tuesday, former world No. 1 Pliskova competed again and beat world No. 34 Anastasia Potapova 6-1 5-7 6-4.
Pliskova on her 'quite crazy' 24 hours between Cluj-Napoca and Doha
"It was quite crazy. I didn’t enjoy the title, still until now, at all because I had to take a private jet from Clij to Istanbul. Then I was running to get the flight. So that was the toughest part of the week in Romania to run and get the plane," Pliskova told Sky Sports Tennis.
"But I slept a little bit in the plane then I arrived yesterday morning at 8. I slept a little bit like three hours and then I went to play... But sometimes it’s like that you know, you’re not thinking and then you playing well, so that’s working with me."
🗣️ "I was running to get the flight" 🏃♀️
— Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) February 13, 2024
Karolina Pliskova on getting from her title win in Romania on Sunday to win her Round of 64 match in Qatar on Monday 😅 pic.twitter.com/HpzDKeIVY4
Meanwhile, the Cluj-Napoca title was Pliskova's first WTA title since the Czech won the Brisbane International in 2020. By winning four matches in Cluj-Napoca and her opening two matches in Doha, Pliskova also won six consecutive matches for the first time since 2021 Wimbledon, when she made the final before losing to Ashleigh Barty.