After a year spent chasing a ball to all corners of the tennis globe, you’d forgive most players for staying put during their brief off-season.
But Brisbane International third seed Angelique Kerber has kept on the move during her break, racking up a few frequent flyer points in the process.
“I spent the first few days in Germany and then spent two weeks in Dubai with my team … coming back and few more days in Poland,” she explains.
While the time in Europe was spent enjoying the company of friends and family, the trip to the Middle East was a little more serious.
Kerber undertook an intensive training camp in scorching temperatures with the goal of acclimatising to the southern hemisphere summer.
“We chose because the weather is much better than in Europe, really warm and the sun was there, that’s why we’re going there,” she said.
“Australia very hot, that’s why we chose to go there.”
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While her record in Australia is solid, the move flags her intentions of leaving a bigger footprint Down Under come February.
The 26-year-old has made the quarterfinals in her past two Brisbane International appearances in the past two years.
Her form at the Australian Open has also been consistent, with fourth round showings the past two seasons to go with a runner-up finish in Sydney last season.
However, she is undoubtedly keen to push deeper into the second week of major tournaments on a more regular basis.
“It’s the first tournament of the year, and I’m looking forward,” Kerber said.
“But I’m feeling healthy and we just enjoy the first tournament.”
> Jankovic, Stosur headline Day 1
A Federation Cup final in November didn’t quite go as planned; the German side lost 3-1 to the Czech Republic with Kerber dropping both singles rubbers to Lucie Safarova and Petra Kvitova.
However, it allowed her to take a break and refocus.
“I think it’s really important to have your time and breaks in between the tournaments … don’t play all the time, think about something different,” she said.
On the theme of something different, Kerber will partner Serbian second seed Ana Ivanovic on the doubles court at this year’s Brisbane International.
She has seemingly picked the perfect time to team up with the former French Open winner, with Ivanovic enjoying resurgence into the top five thanks to four titles in 2014 at Auckland, Monterrey, Birmingham and Tokyo.
“(We were) talking about doubles and then coming to the idea to play doubles – I think it will be fun,” Kerber said.
You can catch Angelique Kerber in action at the 2015 Brisbane International presented by Suncorp and supported by Tourism and Events Queensland. The event will be held at the Queensland Tennis Centre from 4-11 January. Tickets are now on sale through Ticketek.
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