Tennis: Injury-free Radwanska happy to graft away

Urszula Radwanska. Photo / Sarah Ivey

You won't hear Poland's Urszula Radwanska complain about life among the qualifying ranks of the WTA tour circuit.

Having previously enjoyed life as the world's 29th-ranked player, a serious shoulder problem and other niggling injuries over the past two years contributed to a drop in form and saw her ranking fall to 179.

With the other players at the wrong end of the rankings, Radwanska now has to contend with life on the outside courts, away from the large crowds, and must fight hard for every main arena appearance.

Despite those setbacks the 24-year-old is happy with her lot and after fighting her way through three rounds of qualifying and claiming an upset first round win over former Grand Slam champion Francesca Schiavone, Radwanska is through to the second round of the ASB Classic.

"I had a really tough year last year so I'm just happy right now to be healthy," Radwanska explained after Tuesday's straight sets 6-4 7-5 win over the Italian.

"A year ago I had shoulder surgery so I didn't play for four months. I lost some confidence, I had also some small injuries so I wasn't really healthy, so that's why I dropped a lot.

"If I'm healthy I believe I can come back and I can be top 30 again so I'm just not thinking that I'm in qualifiers and 'oh my god'. It's just a matter of time to come back," she said.

A tough preseason at home in Poland before the season-opening event and four matches in four days have improved her confidence and helped her acclimatise to the southern hemisphere summer.

"The first match was really tough, it was three sets," she said. "Today I showed that I'm playing very good tennis and that I'm well prepared, even for this weather, because it was pretty warm out there."

She now looks ahead to a second-round showdown with Slovakian Daniela Hantuchova, who was impressive in Monday's surprise win over second seed Sara Errani.

"I've played Daniela I think two times already. She is also a very good player, a very tough one so we'll see. I'm looking forward to playing against her."

Older sister Agnieszka, the current world No5, is better known to Kiwi fans after winning the 2013 Auckland title, and Urszula continues to draw motivation from her sibling's success.

"She is always inspirational for me. When I see that she's winning and a top player, I want to be the same."