Behind the rise of the 'Greek Spartan'
Maria Sakkari into the top ten of the WTA rankings has been her coach Tom Hill and he believes the sky is the limit for the 26-year-old.
Sakkari has reached two Grand Slam semi-finals this year losing to eventual winners in Barbora Krejcikova and Emma Raducanu but has shown her ability to bounce back from disappointment.
This was evident in her return to action in Ostrava reaching the final losing to Anett Kontaveit.
But it is a result which has brought her even further up the rankings and likely set for the WTA Finals.
For Hill, a relative unknown until he started coaching the Greek believes only arrogance is needed for her to reach the top.
"I hate the word perspective. I can tell any player that he can get to No. 1 or that he can get into the Top 10. It's easy to say, but it's about unlocking it and doing it," he said to
SDNA loosely translated from Greek.
"I know Maria can be the best player in the world. I know. Who's No. 1 right now? Barty? Maria beat her last year. Osaka? Maria beat her last year. Kvitova? Maria beat her this year. There's no one she can't beat. So why not become World No.1? She needs to get a little more arrogance, believe she's the best. She can be, I'm telling you. I think she's more confident from Miami onwards. But I want more!
"Look at Osaka. She lost to Maria in Cincinnati and then kept winning for six months. Look at Barty. That's what I tell Maria, have confidence because it only takes a second and suddenly you're blasting off. It's gonna happen. I hope it happens soon, but at the same time we have to be patient and continue to trust herself."
