\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t After years away from the pro tour, Paola Su\u00e1rez is back on the courts in a different role, with a mission that seems to suit her to a T: helping players grow.<\/p>\n
Her debut as captain of the Argentine national team in the Billie Jean King Cup in April ended on a high note. The result allowed Argentina to qualify for the playoffs for a sixth year in a row while also placing a new building block for a new structure within Argentine women\u2019s tennis.<\/p>\n
Su\u00e1rez\u2019s goal is now to broaden the player base, strengthen Argentina\u2019s doubles team, build a team identity, and support a young generation of players looking to establish themselves in a historically tough environment.<\/p>\n
A special debut for a special player Hailing from Pergamino, Buenos Aires province, Paola Su\u00e1rez was one of the most important players in Argentine tennis history.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She reached the World No. 1 spot in the doubles rankings of the Women\u2019s Tennis Association (WTA), the women\u2019s professional tennis organizing body, won 44 titles \u2014 including eight Grand Slams \u2014 and won bronze at the 2004 Summer Olympics.<\/p>\n
Her singles career is nothing to sniff at either. Su\u00e1rez was a world No. 9, won four titles, and even reached the semifinals at Roland Garros in 2004.<\/p>\n
However, since retiring, Su\u00e1rez has been away from the circuit, instead focusing on running the Pro Tenis Academy in Oviedo, Spain.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe debut as captain was very special for me,\u201d Su\u00e1rez told the AAT. \u201cAfter having been distanced from the world of the professional circuit, coming back and representing my country from a different place feels great.\u201d<\/p>\n
She admits she was \u201cnervous\u201d at first, having to transition from a star player on the court to a leader off it, with the responsibility of teaching skills, managing emotions, and building relationships.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know if I\u2019d be able to convey everything I wanted to the girls,\u201d she noted.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was then that her experience at the academy came in handy, helping her make an instant connection with the players.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe meeting went really well. I\u2019m getting to know the girls little by little, figuring out what they like and how they prefer to work,\u201d said Su\u00e1rez.<\/p>\n
A long-term project for women\u2019s tennis Argentina secured a spot in the Billie Jean King Cup playoffs in April, beating Ecuador 2-0 in the deciding series after defeating Peru and Chile and losing only to Brazil in the group stage.<\/p>\n
The win set up Su\u00e1rez\u2019s team for a November away series against Japan and a chance to make the World Group. Reaching the Billie Jean King Cup elite would prove a push to the new captain.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a very positive thing,\u201d she said. \u201cGetting off to a start like this always helps and gives you the confidence to keep working.\u201d<\/p>\n
Su\u00e1rez is already working with vice-captain Mariano Hood on a long-term project with the two-fold goal of developing the team\u2019s doubles and expanding the team.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to have 10 to 12 players who can come to training sessions and help each other out,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
As one of Argentina\u2019s best-ever doubles players and having played with some of the greatest players of her era, like the Williams sisters, Maria Sharapova, and Am\u00e9lie Mauresmo, Su\u00e1rez is now eager to lead a new generation of Argentine prospects.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel great and am looking forward to keeping working,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After years away from the pro tour, Paola Su\u00e1rez is back on the courts in a different role, with a mission that seems to suit her to a T: helping players grow. Her debut as captain of the Argentine national team in the Billie Jean King Cup in April ended on a high note. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":489,"featured_media":63346,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13303,13209,13306,67],"tags":[13299,13206,13302,1369],"class_list":["post-63345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-argentine-billie-jean-king-cup-team","category-argentine-tennis","category-paola-suarez","category-sports","tag-argentine-billie-jean-king-cup-team","tag-argentine-tennis","tag-paola-suarez","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63345","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/489"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63345"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63345\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/63346"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63345"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=63345"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=63345"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}