Karolina Pliskova: the Wimbledon favourite happy to slip under the radar

Exclusive interview: The world No 3 tells the Independent why she'd be happy to head into Wimbledon without a title win at Eastbourne and explains her rise to the top

Since last July Pliskova has won titles in Cincinnati, Brisbane and Doha and performed consistently at Grand Slam level (Getty)

Whisper it gently, but the favourite to win the women’s singles title at Wimbledon might not be too concerned if she makes an early exit from her only warm-up tournament at next week’s Aegon International in Eastbourne.

Karolina Pliskova, who is currently the bookmakers’ choice to lift the Venus Rosewater Dish next month, was also fancied to do well at the All England Club 12 months ago after winning the title in Nottingham and finishing runner-up in Eastbourne. At Wimbledon, however, she struggled to beat Yanina Wickmayer in the first round and went down in straight sets to Japan’s Misaki Doi, the world No 49, in the second.

“It’s tough to say this, but sometimes it’s better if you are losing because then you don’t expect anything,” Pliskova said as she looked forward to her 2017 grass-court season, which will begin in Eastbourne. “Sometimes the results can come just at the time when you’re not playing well.”

She added: “Maybe I was expecting too much from myself at Wimbledon that time and that was why I was too shaky and didn’t play well.”

Pliskova reached the semi-finals at this year's French Open (Getty)

Pliskova is the favourite for Wimbledon despite having never gone beyond the second round, even if the draw has sometimes done her few favours, with Sabine Lisicki and Coco Vandeweghe, two proven grass-court performers, her conquerors in 2014 and 2015.

There can be little doubt, however, that the 25-year-old Czech’s game is made for grass. She uses her 6ft 1in frame to deliver a fearsome serve which has yielded 249 aces this year, more than any other player on the women’s tour. She moves well for such a tall player, hits big ground strokes and has learned lessons from her Wimbledon experience last summer.

“I played really badly against Doi and after that I decided to change a few things,” Pliskova said. “The level I was playing at the time was really bad. I said to myself: ‘I cannot lose matches like this, even if I’m playing like shit.’

Pliskova is the favourite at Wimbledon - despite having never reached the third round (Getty)

“This year there have been plenty of times when I don’t think I’ve been playing amazing tennis, but even when it’s not one of my best days I’ve been able to win. It seems like everybody is playing better against me these days so you just have to find a way to stay with your opponent and then beat them. Against Doi I wasn’t able to do that.”

Pliskova’s improvement is reflected in her ranking: No 17 in the world 12 months ago, she is now No 3 and a strong contender to top the pile by the end of Wimbledon. Since last July she has won titles in Cincinnati, Brisbane and Doha and performed consistently at Grand Slam level. She reached her first Grand Slam final at the US Open, where she beat Serena Williams in the semi-finals before losing to Angelique Kerber, and then reached the quarter-finals of the Australian Open and the semi-finals at Roland Garros.

“I have some confidence behind me because of the matches that I’ve been winning,” Pliskova said. “I’ve won two titles already this year so I don’t feel the big pressure that I sometimes felt I was under last year. I’m handling some situations better.”

Pliskova was runner-up at last year's US Open (Getty)

Pliskova parted company with Jiri Vanek, her coach, at the end of last season and recruited David Kotyza, who had worked with Petra Kvitova for seven years, as his replacement. Kotyza was Kvitova’s coach when she won her two Wimbledon titles.

“I thought it was a good time for me to change,” Pliskova said. “It’s great to have someone with David’s experience. He’s been there in the biggest matches at the biggest tournaments. That’s a great help to me.”

Pliskova and Kvitova are the latest in a long line of fine Czech players, including Martina Navratilova, Hana Mandlikova and Jana Novotna in the women’s game, and Jaroslav Drobny, Jan Kodes and Ivan Lendl in the men’s. There are currently two Czech men in the world’s top 50 and six women, including Pliskova’s twin sister, Kristyna, who is the No 46.

The quality of coaching and the country’s strong competition structure are important factors in the Czech success, but Pliskova said: “I think it’s more about our history, about the fact that as a country we have produced so many good players. Even now it’s still continuing. Maybe there aren’t so many top players among the guys, but there are plenty of good women. And back home I see lots of small kids practising who have lots of talent. Tennis is a big thing in the Czech Republic.”

Martina Navratilova is Czech Republic's most famous female player (Getty)

The Pliskovas grew up in Louny, a small town some 40 miles from Prague. “We started playing tennis when we were about four or five,” Karolina said. “Nobody from our family had played tennis before. My father used to play ice hockey, though not at a high level, and my mother wasn’t involved in sport at all, but they were keen that we played some sort of sport. They chose tennis, because they thought it was a good sport for girls to play.”

At the age of nine the sisters moved to a club in Germany near Wolfsburg. “There was a Czech coach there and we went to practise with him,” Karolina said. “We were able to play against older and better players there than we could in the Czech Republic. Our mother came with us, but our father was having to travel to see us maybe once a month. Then we went back to Prague. We played there and my sister won the Czech championship, which was the best win either of us had had.”

The twins both won Grand Slam junior titles in 2010. Kristyna won Wimbledon and Karolina won the Australian Open, beating Laura Robson in the final after the Briton had beaten the Czech’s sister in the semi-finals. While Karolina has soared up the rankings in the last two years, Robson, who is two years younger, has been struggling ever since undergoing wrist surgery three years ago. Robson is currently the world No 188 and will be playing at Wimbledon courtesy of a wild card.

“When I played her in Australia people were talking about her as a great talent because she was so young at the time,” Pliskova said. “Everyone thought she would soon be in the world’s top 20 or top 10. But she’s had some tough years with her injuries. It’s never easy to come back. She was out for a year or more and it’s very hard to come back after something like that, but I think she will still have a chance if she keeps trying.”

Pliskova said she has learned from her Wimbledon experience last summer (Getty)

Pliskova now lives in Monte Carlo, where she enjoys her anonymity compared with life in the Czech Republic. “I love being there, even if I don’t have my family nearby,” she said. “I have my privacy and nobody recognises me.”

The only drawback with living in Monte Carlo is that there is no opportunity to indulge her passion for fresh-water fishing. “Our dad used to take us fishing and I still love it,” Pliskova said. “Unfortunately the tournament schedule means it’s very difficult to go fishing now, but when I next get the chance I will definitely try to take it.”