Nur-Sultan – German women’s tennis team boss Rainer Schüttler senses an increasing looseness in Angelique Kerber. “The older she gets, the more relaxed she becomes,” Schüttler said of the 34-year-old ahead of her Billie Jean King Cup match in Kazakhstan.
“I think she is very hungry. She definitely, in the time she’s still playing – she’s not getting any younger – she wants to do the best she can.”
The 45-year-old had coached Kerber for a few months in the 2019 season and last trained with her for a few days before Indian Wells. “You can see that physically she continues to work hard, that she is fit and enjoys tennis,” Schüttler said.
Schüttler has not yet decided who will play singles alongside the top German player against the Kazakh hosts in Nur-Sultan on Friday and Saturday. Andrea Petkovic is out due to an adductor injury. Laura Siegemund, on the other hand, is an option again after her knee operation. In addition, Anna-Lena Friedsam and Jule Niemeier are part of the line-up. “I have to say that everyone makes a good impression in training,” said Schüttler.
Kazakhstan is led by world number 19 Yelena Rybakina. The winners will qualify for the final round of the competition, formerly called the Fed Cup, in November. “It will be a very tough weekend. If you just look at pure paper, the Kazakhstan team is a bit stronger in the rankings, which hopefully won’t always be the deciding factor at the weekend,” Schüttler said.
Kazakhstan is a southern neighbour of Russia. The Russian attack on Ukraine has not affected conditions so far, Schüttler said. “We feel very comfortable here. I think we had to fly a bit of a diversion on the way there, but otherwise we haven’t noticed anything about it, fortunately,” said Schüttler.