Rajecki kicks off grass court season with a bang on UK return

By Paul Eddison

NOTTINGHAM tennis star Amelia Rajecki only landed back in the UK on Tuesday but she is already up and running this grass court season.

The 22-year-old has just completed a four-year stint in the States playing college tennis in North Carolina, and made her first appearance of the season on grass at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy.

Up against Poland’s Urszula Radwanska, a former top 30 player in the world, Rajecki was ruthless, racing to a 6-1 6-0 victory.

It was a far cry from their meeting in Aldershot two years ago when Radwanska cruised to a straight-sets success, with Rajecki thrilled at her performance.

She said: “I was shocked. It’s my second day on grass, so I was a little shaky at the start. I played her two years ago, it wasn’t great. She definitely has the experience which in a lot of cases can get you through.

“I served well, hit the ball well, I was just trying to be aggressive. You have to be on grass and when I did, it was good. In the tight moments, I just made sure I went for it and made good decisions.”

Rajecki enjoyed a great deal of success with the Wolfpack at North Carolina State, enjoying the American college sport experience, finishing off with the prestigious NCAA tournament.

Now back home in Nottingham, she is looking to picking up as many victories as possible during the grass court swing before she makes a decision on her future plans.

She added: “I got back on Tuesday. I finished NCAAs, packed up all my stuff, left and now I’m back. It’s very different. I’m so used to coming back here, knowing that I’ll go back eventually. Now I have to look forward and sort my life out a little bit. I’ve got to sort out coaching and everything. I’ve moved back home, it’s a lot. But I was looking forward to it, four years is a long time so it’s good to be back.

“The college environment is really hard to replicate. So I’m trying to find somewhere, I’m thinking Loughborough University, a similar environment, a lot of athletes. I might do a Master's. I like the balance of education. I did human biology so I might do physio or sports science. It’s good to have something else to focus on because tennis can fill everything. Doing something else is great for mental health.

“I have nothing to lose this summer so I want to build up a ranking and go travelling, go on the road for a bit. I’ve not had the opportunity to do that. If I can get on the road and play some matches, build some points and go from there.”

Amelia Rajecki is on the LTA’s Pro Scholarship Programme presented by Lexus, the highest level of support for developing players aged 16-24, designed to help them crack the Top 100.