"I’m grateful for it. Pressure is a privilege" - Zeynep Sonmez thriving in new-found fame and fortune after perfect start at Indian Wells

Zeynep Sonmez continues to make a steady impression on the WTA Tour after taking down a well-respected opponent in the form of McCartney Kessler 7-6(7), 6-0 to reach the second round of the Indian Wells Open. Speaking to the Tennis Channel after the victory, Sonmez was not getting ahead of herself with the praise being shrouded on her as she looks to enjoy her time on court.

Kessler started much the brighter, going 3-0 ahead before Sonmez replied with a three-game spurt of her own. It was deadlock between the players, who both missed opportunities to break, ahead of a tiebreak. Both players missed a singular set point before the Turkish number one was able to get over the line. This seemed to spark her into life, winning 12 points on the spin at one point enroute to a 4-0 lead. She dropped just four points on serve in the second set and would see it out with real maturity and ease to book her spot in the second round.

"It was a tough match," she spoke after. "I didn’t start very well, but she was playing very aggressively in the beginning and I needed to get used to it. So I said, you know, I need to take the advantage first — I need to go in a little bit more and play closer to the line. I think I did a good job, so I’m very happy with my performance."

Sonmez was enjoying life already in her debut main draw appearance at Indian Wells, exerting a whole heap of positive energy when on court, picked up by the interview Prakash Amritraj who compared it to the surrounding California desert. This was a reference enjoyed by Sonmez who described it as 'perfect.'

"It’s just a bit hot, a bit warm, but there’s no humidity, so that’s good," she described. "But today on court, when it was like 4–all, I was like, 'I need to rest a little bit.' It was very hot. But I like being here. The view is amazing — it doesn’t matter where you look from, it’s stunning. So I like being here, definitely."

Amritraj later went on to describe her as someone who 'never get too up or too down.' This claim was instantly swiped away from the 23-year-old who disclosed that there is more than the eye can see.

"Maybe I look like that — I’m glad that I do. But there are times when I’m very hard on myself. My team and my family are always saying, 'Try to be easier on yourself. Give yourself some time and try to be patient.' I’m trying, but some days it’s harder. Today was better, so I’m happy with today."

She continued to showcase this positive persona while looking back on all the good things which has happened over the last year or so, changing her life for the better while earning a huge amount of recognition from her peers and comrades.

"There are a lot of things that I’m very grateful for. Last year, Wimbledon Championships was unreal, and this year the Australian Open was very good too." She gave a special mention to her breakout WTA title win. "When I won my first title in Mérida Open, it was very special. I was there last week, and it’s always good to be back. I think it affects my tennis too. I like being there, I love them, and they love me."

It is hard to not believe in yourself in a time like this with Sonmez riding the crest of a wave. "So I started to feel better about myself and better about my tennis last week, and I think it affected this week too," she stated. "When I came here, I was feeling the ball well. Overall, I like being on the court. When I feel good, I play good too — that’s what’s happening right now. I’m going to try to keep it going."

She is in awe of all the support from home and wherever she travels to, but not getting ahead of herself she senses the weight of pressure and expectation grow substantially on her shoulders.

"It does come with pressure — I’m aware of it," she acknowledged. "There are a lot of people supporting me, but at the same time there are a lot of expectations too. But I’m grateful for it. Pressure is a privilege. I’m very happy about it — I just need to get used to it."

In the end, Sonmez is still tredding baby steps into tennis with her just trying to enjoy her time doing what she loves. "Everything is new for me too, and I think I’m getting there slowly. I’m trying to be easy on myself, because sometimes it gets very tough. But I’m trying to enjoy every second on the court, because I know it’s not that long of a journey. I’m just trying to do my best and enjoy every single moment."

Ranked as high as world number 69, Sonmez is languishing slightly lower currently at world number 80 after that failed Merida Open title defence. She does, however, have huge potential to rise quite far in the sport with the potential already there to see.

"I think I need to improve myself — I’m aware of that, everyone tells me that," she insisted. "We’re trying to add small things, because it’s not so easy when you’re playing tournaments to change things in your game. At the same time you need to practise, but you’re also playing matches."

A compliment she highlighted from today was that she had served well, and took this in her stride with patience for the rest of her game to also catch up. "So we’re trying to make the changes as small as possible so they don’t affect my game too much. I think we’re going in a good direction, but it’s going very slowly. For example, today my coach said that I had some good serves, so I’m glad. All the best things take time. We’re trying to improve things, and days like this — matches like this — give some confidence, which is always good."

These improvements would be critical if she was going to break more ground and make even more history for her country. In the previous four WTA 1000 events she has competed in, the 2025 Wuhan Open remains the only one, aside from Indian Wells 2026, where she has won a match, reaching the third round before losing in a tight match to Anastasia Potapova.

She has the chance to draw level with her overall best WTA 1000 performance if she can take down Anna Kalinskaya. It is a first time meeting between Sonmez and the world number 22 with the Russian coming into good form having only been knocked out of the past three tournaments by some of the best players in the world.

Kalinskaya drew glowing praise from her opponent. "She’s a great player. I haven’t talked to my team about the match yet, so I’m not sure what we’re going to do. I don’t think I have a match tomorrow — I’m not 100% sure — but I’ll practise and we’ll talk about the match and how I should play. We’ll probably watch the match I played today as well. We have some time, so I’m just hoping to play even better tennis and enjoy it."