British star Katie Boulter shot up the rankings in 2024, but she says she’s ready to make some subtle changes to her game in a bid to prioritise grand slams after recording just three singles victories at the four big events this year.
Boulter rose to number 23 in the world and will finish the year ranked 24th on the back of a 37-22 singles record in 2024, but she’s not content and is willing to make changes to her schedule to ensure she’s at her best for the biggest tournaments.
It’s why she’s set to make the grand slams her number one priority next year after only managing to make the second round at the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, with Boulter yet to make the fourth round at any major.
“My aim next year is to start prioritising the grand slam and the really big events,” she said just hours before she announced her engagement to Australian star Alex de Minaur.
“I’ve made such great ground this year and I feel like I’ve pushed on loads, but now it’s time to start prioritising the big events.
“That for me means maybe not playing the week before slams or maybe trying to push myself in different ways that I normally wouldn’t be doing.
“That’s the exciting thing for me is to start thinking about making the second week of slams and not too much about playing more weeks and other things that haven’t been a priority.”
Boulter will be looking for a fast start to her summer at the United Cup where she won both her matches last time around against Australia’s Ajla Tomljanovic and current world number seven Jess Pegula.
She’ll face Nadia Podoroska and Australia’s Olivia Gadecki in Sydney and knows the importance of getting big games under her belt before the first major of the year.
“I think it’s imperative,” she said.
“That was a great moment for me (winning those matches) because I’d just started working with a new member of my team, and you never quite know what can happen after having new people come in and out of your team.
“It was a nice way to consolidate the work that I’d done, and to start the year against a top 10 player and to get a win showed me that I was on the right path and it gave me a lot of confidence going into the rest of the year.
“I felt like getting some wins under my belt ahead of the AO was very important, so I’ll definitely be looking to do that here, and if not here, then in Adelaide.”
Great Britain’s hopes of advancing to the finals have taken a hit with Jack Draper ruled out of the United Cup due to a hip injury, with Billy Harris now set to face de Minaur on January 1.
“I’m really quite gutted that he isn’t going to be here,” Boulter said.
“I’ve followed Jack for a very long time so I wish him the best.
“I’ve been through some health struggles of my own and I’ve seen what he’s been through recently so I just want to see him out there playing and healthy. That’s the most important thing.
“It’s tough to not have him here, but health is always going to be number one and I completely respect that.”
Content Source: www.perthnow.com.au