The last six months of Storm Sanders’ career have been nothing short of incredible, going from strength to strength since the end of 2012. She ended that year with a WTA ranking of 721. By the end of February her ranking soared to 408 and was projected to be inside the top 400 within a week. After narrowly missing out on a spot in the Bundaberg Finals in March Sanders’ ranking currently stands at 342 in the world.
It all began with Sanders’ first Pro Circuit win in Launceston, where she knocked out the top seed and top 150 player, Olivia Rogowska en route to the final of the $25,000 ITF event.
Following on from her success in Tasmania, Sanders stretched her Pro Tour winning streak to 11 matches, securing her a spot in the Ipswich Tennis International finals. Sanders narrowly missed out on the title, extending the match to three sets.
The 18-year-old from Secret Harbour is now Australia’s 11th highest ranked woman.
Sanders’ coach and former top 50 player Nicole Pratt is incredibly proud of her achievements.
“Her success is due to the way she has been committed to making improvements and her attitude to getting better every day. Results have to come when you’ve got that type of attitude.”
Pratt explains the importance of building confidence and what is on the horizon for her young charge.
“Her breakthrough occurred in January, when she beat a peer who was ranked 140 in the world at the Sydney qualifiers, Eugenie Bouchard from Canada. This gave her a boost. All the hard work is starting to pay off, the belief that she can beat players in the top 200”.
“Storm will be aiming for the $50,000 main draw in Japan in April. She will also aim for the $25,000 (tournaments) in Asia to improve her ranking. Long term she hopes to qualify for the US Open in September,” said Pratt.
As a past player in Perth’s National Academy, her former coach and now CEO of Tennis West, Michael Robertson had this to say.
“Storm never missed training over four years, listened carefully to advice and outworked everyone. She fully deserves the success she is now starting to enjoy.”
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