David Bridges
World No. 7 Maria Sakkari has called out “Twitter journalists” that “have no life” and give themselves the right to criticize WTA players. On Wednesday, first-seeded Sakkari recovered from a set down to beat Arantxa Rus 3-6 6-2 6-3 in the Parma round-of-16.
After the match, Sakkari addressed the criticism that is often directed toward WTA players. “WTA level is very high. I disagree with Twitter journalists that have no life and just criticize players. You have to respect every singles player, because you don’t know what they are going through, you have to respect women tennis and players,” Sakkari told Alessandro Nizegorodcew.
#Sakkari answers to @Alenize82: “WTA level is very high. I disagree with Twitter “journalists” that have no life and just criticizes players. You have to respect every singles player, because you don’t know what they are going through, you have to respect women tennis and players https://t.co/I3sRyqpBi1 — Lorenzo Ercoli (@Ladal17) September 28, 2022
Sakkari finding her game in Parma after a disappointing summer on hard
In March, Sakkari ended runner-up at the WTA 1000 event in Indian Wells.
Then after Miami, Sakkari rose to a career-high ranking of No. 2 in the world. Since then, Sakkari has had many disappointing results and early exits from tournaments. In August, Sakkari honestly admitted what was the reason behind her poor form.
“I just sat down with [Coach] Tom [Hill] for a lot of hours and just realized that I’m not enjoying being one of the best players in the world, which was something very tough to admit and very tough to handle,” Sakkari said.
“But it’s the truth. It’s the reality. I think that the pressure and everything was something I had to deal with.” This week in Parma, Sakkari has been through to her first quarterfinal since June, when she reached the Berlin semifinal.
After going just 2/4 during the North American hard court swing, Sakkari decided to return to clay courts and compete at this week’s WTA event in Parma. In Parma, Sakkari has managed to win three matches and she has a chance to win her first title of the season. Sakkari plays Danka Kovinic next.
