"Would love to be top 10 by the end of the year"- Sofia Kenin

In a conversation with the WTA, Sofia Kenin spoke about her goals for the 2022 season. She said she is keen on finishing 2022 in the top 10 of the WTA rankings and is going to work hard to achieve her target.

"Obviously I want to do well and my dad wants me to do well. We didn't really set a goal. Right now it's match-by-match. A win is a win, we'll take it. It's very good compared to not playing for six months, getting back out there. So I don't have much pressure in terms of that.

"But obviously would love to be top 10 by the end of the year. I'm going to try to work hard to get there. I feel like the worst case, if I don't have the best first half season, I've got the rest, which I missed out last year due to injury and COVID. So I feel like I should be fine as long as my head's there and I feel like it is there and I'm getting back into things"

The former Australian Open champion had a disappointing season in 2021 which saw her ranking fall from fourth to 12th. Early in the year, Kenin's father left her coaching team but the pair have since reunited.

Kenin's hopes of defending her 2020 Australian Open title were dashed as she exited the competition in the second round after losing to Kaia Kanepi. Following disappointing exits at the Charleston Open and Stuttgart Open, the American reached the fourth round of the French Open but lost to eventual semifinalist Maria Sakkari.

Kenin also made an early exit at Wimbledon, losing in the second round to her compatriot Madison Brengle. She did not feature for the rest of the year as the American battled both COVID-19 and injuries. She subsequently fell out of the top 10 of the WTA rankings.

The American announced on social media in July that she had sustained a minor foot injury that would keep her out of the game for a while. In August, she tested positive for COVID-19 and had to withdraw from the US Open.

Sofia Kenin starts 2022 with a win

Kenin started 2022 with a win

The 23-year-old returned to action at the Adelaide International as the sixth seed and began with a victory over Italian qualifier Lucia Bronzetti. Kenin was made to work hard but eventually prevailed 7-5, 7-5.

She next takes on Ajla Tomjlanovic in the second round and a victory could set up a quarterfinal clash against World No. 1 Ashleigh Barty.

The American will then shift her focus to the Australian Open where she will hope to make a good run. Given that the 23-year-old will only have 70 points to defend, a long run in the Asia-Pacific Grand Slam might help her return to the top 10 of the WTA rankings.