Veronika Kudermetova calls herself a 'very ambitious person', labels Roger Federer & Serena Williams as the GOATs

Veronika Kudermetova is one of the rising young stars of the WTA tour today. The 23-year-old Russian has climbed close to 200 ranking spots in the last couple of years, to find herself currently perched at No. 36.

Kudermetova recently produced a spectacular showing at the Abu Dhabi Open, finishing as the runner-up. That, coupled with her other promising results in 2020, have led many to believe the Russian will start knocking on the doors of the top 10 very soon.

Veronika Kudermetova eliminated 10th seed Anett Kontaveit in her opening round at Abu Dhabi. The 23-year-old followed that up with convincing victories over Bianca Turati and Paula Badosa.

Her next couple of wins were perhaps the most impressive of all - against World No. 5 Elina Svitolina (over whom she has a 100% record so far), and against another rising star in Marta Kostyuk. Kudermetova’s run only ended against the in-form Aryna Sabalenka - who the Russian believes is the 'hottest player on tour right now'.

In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, Veronika Kudermetova spoke about her goals for the new season and her chances at the upcoming Australian Open. The Russian also revealed that she considers Roger Federer and Serena Williams as the ‘Greatest of All Time’ (GOAT) in men's and women's tennis respectively.

Here are the excerpts from the interview:

Sportskeeda: Congratulations on your Abu Dhabi run! What are your biggest objectives for the 2021 season? Have you set a target for any specific number of finals or titles, especially at the Slams?

Veronika Kudermetova: Thank you very much! And no, I did not set any specific goals with my team. But I have to admit I am a very ambitious person, so I have very high expectations from my tennis career.

SK: Having made the final in such a strong Abu Dhabi field, do you think your maiden WTA title is near?

VK: I think this result will give me more confidence and more motivation to keep working hard and reach my potential.

Veronika Kudermetova in action at the 2021 Abu Dhabi WTA Women's Tennis Open

SK: What do you think of your chances at the Australian Open? Are you excited for the Slam, or apprehensive given the strict situation in Melbourne?

VK: I am coming in with confidence and feeling good physically and mentally. So I believe if I can keep up the hard work and improve my level during the next 14 days of quarantine and practice, I believe I can play good.

SK: This was your second career final against Aryna Sabalenka; you had beaten her in doubles at Wuhan 2019. What do you think of Aryna as an opponent?

VK: She is really good! She has won three of the last three tournaments she has played, so she obviously has a lot of confidence and is probably the hottest player on tour right now.

SK: Speaking of great players, who do you think is the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) on the women’s and men’s sides?

VK: Serena Williams and Roger Federer, but I also liked Justine Henin a lot.

Roger Federer is Veronika Kudermetova's favorite player among the 'Big 3'

SK: Who is your favorite among the Big 3 of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic?

VK: Roger Federer.

SK: Is there any player you have tried to model your game on?

VK: I looked up to Maria Sharapova when I was young.

SK: What do you think are your biggest strengths and biggest areas of improvement?

VK: I can't tell my secrets, sorry (laughs)

SK: Who according to you is the favorite for the men's and women's titles at the Australian Open this year?

VK: Difficult to say considering the difficulties of the times we are living in, a lot of different things can happen in the next 2/3 weeks.

SK: Who do you think is your biggest competition among the younger players?

VK: Not sure, many young players are coming up and showing their big potential. I think we are a very nice group of players and will push each other to the top.