Martin Vilar, Parry's Coach: "Diane Just Played Pain-Free for the First Time"

Diane Parry is back. The 22-year-old Frenchwoman, ranked 116th in the world, hasn’t played much in 2025. A knee injury forced the Nice native to withdraw from the Sunshine Double, missing her chance to compete at Indian Wells and Miami.

Entering the qualifying rounds of the WTA 1000 in Madrid, Parry secured her spot in the main draw with impressive wins over Oksana Selekhmeteva (6-2, 7-5) and Elisabetta Cocciaretto (6-2, 6-2).

Her coach, Argentine Martin Vilar, reflected on his protégée’s challenging period as she returns from injury and regains her rhythm ahead of her match against Begu this Wednesday.

"A year ago at this time, Diane had already played 21 matches in her season. This time, she was only at five before Madrid qualifiers. She just played pain-free for the first time.

Because of her knee, we couldn’t train during the off-season, and then in February, just as we were finishing a physical prep block in Dubai after the Australian Open, she hurt herself in her very first game at the Abu Dhabi tournament. On the other leg, as compensation.

Every time we tried to restart, something else came up—her abs, her shoulder... But that’s normal at this level—it’s very demanding. Diane really deserves this. We’ve come out of a rough patch; it was a struggle.

I’m just so happy to see her playing again because she was sad when she could only give half of herself on the court. She’s finally starting to feel like a tennis player again," he told *L’Équipe*.