Stosur, now 35, was in her heyday one of the world’s great players. She became a grand slam champion by winning the 2011 US Open and reached a career-high ranking of world No 4. For 452 consecutive weeks, from October 2008 to June 2017, Stosur held the status of Australia’s No 1 female competitor in singles. Yet, whenever she competed in her own country, she was crippled by nerves. Never did she manage to progress further than the fourth round at Melbourne Park.

Source: The Times January 20, 2020 00:11 UTC