Sport | Tennis
Dubai experience promises to hold Peer in good stead for rest of season
Rates championships as one of her best tournaments because of the way she competed
- By Alaric Gomes, Senior Reporter
- Published: 00:00 February 20, 2010
- Image Credit: Francois Nel, Gulf News
- Shahar Peer in action during her match against Venus Williams in the semifinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Dubai: Israel's Shahar Peer wants to carry forward her Dubai experience and live off it for the remainder of the season.
"I think I learned that I am a very good player and that I can be there in the top of tennis. I think it was one of my best tournaments not only by the results, but also by the way I was playing," she said.
Peer's encounter against Venus Williams yesterday was her third semifinal from five events so far this year. She lost the match.
Though ranked No 22 in the world, Peer was the losing finalist at the Hobart Open last month. She is expected to return to the top 20 for the first time since May 2008 when the world rankings are announced on Monday.
"You can play and win matches, but it doesn't mean that you are playing well. And I think I played very, very well in this tournament and everything came together. So I think I will take it to the rest of the year and for my confidence," she said.
Peer is carrying a lot of good memories from Dubai. "It was a different experience, but a nice one. I am sure I will remember this tournament for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, I couldn't manage to win it, which would have been my dream. But there are no complaints.
"I think I achieved a lot in this tournament, professionally and mentally.
"There are so many things to remember, like how the whole tournament treated me, the whole group that was with me and then Salah [Tahlak] and the WTA and Fabrice [Chouquet, the WTA tour supervisor]. They just let me feel as good as possible."
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