Dubai: Oman's top female player Fatma Al Nabhani does not see any reason why she cannot aspire to play in the main draw of the annual Dubai Duty Free Women's Open.
"Last year I had some good results that saw me break into the top 300 in the rankings. And then I got a back injury in August," Al Nabhani said.
"But the season did teach me that I have the capacity to be there among the top players. The only thing possibly missing is that I need to stay injury free," she added.
Dubai Duty Free, owners and organisers of the annual tournament, have given the Omani a wild card entry in the qualifying for the past three years now. However, Al Nabhani, who turns 20 in May, feels that she may be worthy enough for a wild card entry into the main draw.
"This tournament has helped me. After playing at this level I have seen my capacity and opportunity to learn. Most of the time I am confined to playing the smaller ITF events, and then when I play here or in Doha, my level goes up a few notches as it is such a learning curve for me," Al Nabhani said.
"This tournament definitely improves a lot of aspects in my game and I get the experience of playing at a completely different level," she added.
"Considering all this I don't see any reason why I cannot take the next logical step and play in the main competition here next year."
With this goal in mind, Al Nabhani has set her targets for 2011.
"I need match practice. It is particularly tough to make a return after an injury," Al Nabhani said, preparing to leave for Doha for the qualifying rounds of the Qatar Open.
"But I am decided on playing in tournaments, no matter the results, so that I get the match experience.
"Last year my goal was to get to 500 or 600 by the end of 2010. However, I reached 300 by August and then had the injury. So this year hopefully I can do the same and surprise myself yet."
