Starodubtseva: I’ll try not to give Jabeur too much respect on the court

Debutante in the main draw of the Grand Slam tournament Yulia Starodubtseva commented on her victory over Gabriela Knutson in the qualifying final, and also shared her expectations from the confrontation with the sixth racket of the world in the first round Australian Open 2024.

“The ending turned out to be very nervous – I was only two goals away from defeat, but, thank God, everything worked out. I tried to believe in myself until the last ball.”

“In the second set, I felt the heat so well, and I couldn’t focus on playing at the same level as in the first game. In addition, the end of the first set squeezed a lot of energy out of me, and although I tried to start well, I lacked focus. Perhaps this is the moment I am most dissatisfied with in this fight. I could have finished the match a little easier, because I was leading 4:2 in the third set.”

“Let’s see how I play [против Жабер], but I will believe in myself and try not to give her too much respect on the court (laughs). In fact, I am very glad that I will meet such an opponent – I am very interested in how I will play. I will fight to the end, and then we’ll see what happens.”

Back in early October, Yulia was in the third hundred of the WTA rankings. At the end of the same month, she won her debut victory at the WTA level, while simultaneously breaking into the top 200 of the world rankings.

The victory in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open 2024 qualification became Yulia’s debut in the Grand Slam series tournaments. Then Starodubtseva won two more fights and secured her participation in the main draw. There she will fight with world number six Ons Jabeur, representing Tunisia.

In total, seven Ukrainians will play in the main draw of the tournament for the first time in history. Their matches will take place on January 14th and 15th.