Mara Gae played her first official match in the professional circuit at the Transylvania Open. And, even though she lost to Martha Matoula from Greece, Mara managed to showcase her impressive shots and the competitive spirit that helped her win the junior doubles at the US Open.
After her first-round qualifying match, we spoke with Mara about her debut in front of the Cluj audience.
Mara, you’re coming off an excellent result in juniors, winning the junior doubles at the US Open, and now you’ve made your debut in the professional circuit at the Transylvania Open. How do you feel after this new milestone in your career?
I’m very pleased with what I’ve done. I’ve prepared very well over the past two weeks, and I feel that I’ve reached a certain potential. So, what I wanted most was to give myself a chance to show this potential in such special circumstances as those in Cluj. I played a senior match; I wasn’t playing juniors. I faced an experienced opponent, 26 years old. I tried to stay as clear-headed as possible in crucial moments, especially in the second set, under pressure. I have every reason to be satisfied.
After the US Open, I tried to introduce new techniques and work on tactics, and mental approaches. Coming up with this new approach to an important match provided me with a lot of ideas to implement in the future. It’s a starting point for the future, and I take away only positive things from this match, which is excellent.
You smiled a lot on the court today. Is this something you usually do, or is it one of the changes you’ve set for yourself?
Usually, I don’t smile on the court. But today, I smiled a lot. I tried to change my mindset because, in Grand Slam tournaments (in juniors), I didn’t do that. I tried to enjoy every point, every moment because I didn’t know when I’d have such an opportunity again, to have ball kids, a chair umpire, not to mention a crowd like the one in Cluj, enormous and full of people who came specially to support me. I tried to enjoy every moment. I’m trying to be more positive, not to take everything too personally, to be open to the points my opponent makes, to be open to comments from the sidelines – positive or negative, you hear them, even when you’re on the court, concentrated – and to give myself a chance to show my potential.
Speaking of potential: you’re the kind of player with many shots, you come to the court with many weapons, and you can finish a point in two shots. What’s your approach and your team’s approach to protect your confidence to hit aggressively?
We’re still working on that. In principle, the idea is not to think about the score when hitting the ball. It was an extraordinary match for me today because I managed to hit the ball and play my game in pressure moments. This is what we aim to do every day, not only in matches but also in training. I’m a very aggressive player, so I have to deal with handling errors. It’s tough to swallow when you have a lot of points thought out correctly, but you can’t close them. But that’s what we’re aiming for as a team, to overcome and play point by point.
How do you work with your coaches Raluca Olaru and Adrian Cruciat?
I feel very good with both Raluca and Adrian Cruciat. We make a trio, and we get along very well. Things have gone very well so far, and I hope we can continue to understand each other and have the same chemistry. This is very important.
Raluca was a very good doubles player, and you just had significant success in doubles. How much did getting closer to her help?
Certainly, I’ve learned certain details from her that I didn’t understand or know, and I’ve applied them fairly quickly following the results. But I’m a player in both singles and doubles; I have results in singles too, looking at my junior history. Doubles helps me a lot because I get used to going to the net a lot, I have a mix of volleys, and I think I showed that today.
What are your goals from now on?
I’m caught up with the Baccalaureate next year, which is a more tense period. I’ll need to balance my time between tennis and school to successfully finish high school. Until May or June when the Bac for Olympians takes place, we’ll take it slowly, to integrate into the senior circuit because it’s a significant step. I’ll have to adapt my game and tactics, technically I’m okay, but there’s always room for improvement… In the long run, why not aim for the Top 300 or Top 200 in a year? Then, it wouldn’t sound bad to start playing Grand Slam qualifiers within the next two years.
