Furlan, Paolini's Coach: "I Never See Jasmine Being Overwhelmed by Expectations"
Jasmine Paolini had an exceptional 2024 and will need to confirm her form this year. Ranked 4th in the world at the start of the season, the Italian, who won the WTA 1000 in Dubai last year, stumbled in the round of 16 this year due to a foot injury against Sofia Kenin.
This result caused her to drop to 6th place in the WTA rankings. Nonetheless, her coach, Renzo Furlan, is not worried about his protégé; quite the opposite.
In an interview with Super Tennis, he reflects on Paolini's current period, who also reached her first two Grand Slam finals in 2024.
"I never see Jasmine being overwhelmed by expectations, or at least, being too tense. Of course, she knows all the points she has to defend, she knows it’s part of the game, and she absolutely loves what she does.
She thinks about it, of course. But she always focuses on what needs to be done. What lowers the tension related to expectations is working on aspects that can make you a better tennis player.
In Qatar, she lost to Ostapenko, who reached the final, leaving only a few games to all her opponents.
At the Australian Open, she lost to Svitolina, who played extraordinary tennis. The matches Jasmine was supposed to win, she always won.
She plays good tennis, but it's necessary to find continuity. What is good about sharing so many years with a player is that you manage to develop excellent communication.
But at the same time, it’s not always easy to find something new, which allows the player to continue to evolve. To succeed, you need to be very good in terms of communication," explained Furlan.
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