Margarita Gasparyan believes she can beat more of the best in the world after she recorded an impressive 6-3 3-6 6-4 win over Elina Svitolina at the Nature Valley Classic in Birmingham.
The Russian, 24, played some excellent tennis at times during the match and she is confident that her style can cause problems for other high-ranked players in the future.
“I’m really happy that I won today because it was a really important victory,” Gasparyan said. “I played against a really great player and I think I’m playing really well.”
It was the Russian’s second win over a top ten player after she beat Kiki Bertens in a tight three-set match in Linz in October last year, and she is definitely starting to understand what is required to be successful in these high-profile encounters.
“With very victory like this you feel more confident in yourself,” Gasparyan said. “You just feel like you can beat more and more of this kind of player.”
Gasparyan back to her best after lengthy injury lay-off
In many ways, it is remarkable that the Russian is even still playing tennis after she endured a long spell on the sidelines with a knee injury.
It took three surgeries to repair the damage. However, while it has taken Gasparyan a long time to feel like she is back to her best, she is convinced she is there now.
“It was really, really tough (to come back from the injury),” the World No.62 said. “I was away a long time, almost two years, but I’m happy that I’m here now and I can compete.”
She continued, “Now (I’m established again) I have different goals and I just want to win as many matches as I can. I was 41 in the world. But now I want to be higher. So I just want to work hard and then I hope I will achieve my goals.”
Gasparyan feels comfortable on grass
Due to her injury, Gasparyan had only played six grass court matches on the WTA tour before this year. However, that inexperience on the surface has barely hampered her at all and she believes it is because grass suits her game.
“I enjoy grass more than clay court,” the Russian said with a smile. “The rallies are faster and it suits my aggressive game.”
She continued, “I haven’t played a lot of tournaments on grass, but even now after some years away I’m feeling really good, so it’s not like I have to play a lot of tournaments to feel nice on the grass.”
Gasparyan is also encouraged by the way she handled the key moments against Svitolina. “I was confident (at those times) because I like the shots that I’m hitting and my ball is going deep.”
The Russian’s next task will be tricky one against either Ekaterina Alexandrova or French Open quarter-finalist Petra Martic. But her confidence is high and she will feel good about her chances whoever she faces.
