Sam Stosur’s out-of-the-box Australian Open preparation

Samantha Stosur is the first to admit she has performed to her ability over the last several seasons but has tried something a little different this pre-season to shake things up.

Samantha Stosur is looking to find success eight years after her US Open win. Picture: Getty Images

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Possums, personal bests and ­positivity.

Samantha Stosur’s pre-season has been out of the box, and as the Australian veteran prepares for her 19th summer as a professional with little fanfare or public hope, she has vowed to show us more smiles.

“It’s not like I’ve never tried to do this before, but really showing that positivity out there,” Stosur said.

“The perception of people is that sometimes I’m really serious and typically don’t smile too much on court, so I’m not enjoying it.

“I’ve got the sunglasses on and you can’t see my eyes and it comes across as though I’m serious and hard, when in fact I’m not actually like that at all.

Samantha Stosur is looking to find success eight years after her US Open win. Picture: Getty Images

“So I’ve been working on showing that positivity more; hit a winner and actually enjoy that moment, letting that out and expressing more of what I am off the court.

“It’s easier said than done. It’s just different in the heat of the moment. You’ve got to not let that bad stuff worry you as much.”

Stosur, 34, begins the year playing Serbian Dominika Cibulkova at the Sydney International today.

Having dropped to world No.74 in the rankings, and not reaching a grand slam final since her US Open title in 2011, few give Stosur a chance of success at the Australian Open starting next week.

“Over the years you see many players who seemingly hit their pinnacle and won a slam, drop back, and have been able to come back again, and the greatest champions are able to do that,” Stosur said.

Stosur hasn’t reached a grand slam final since she lifted this trophy back in 2011 at the US Open. Picture: AFP

“I’m not going to stand here and say ‘I’m going to win a slam and get back to No.4 in the world’, but I still feel like I can do better than I have been.

“I don’t know where that is, but while you’ve got the opportunity to keep going and explore that, it’s exciting. You can only try your best and see where that is.

“If I didn’t believe I could still play well and enjoy it and compete with a lot of girls out here, it would be hard to keep going. You’d feel like you’re banging your head against a wall.

“But I still feel like there’s a lot of room for improvement. It may turn into a golden story, it may not. You don’t know until you try.”

To reignite her career, Stosur embarked on a five-day hike with friends across the stunning Wilson’s Promontory trail in Victoria, carrying one change of clothing, making do without showers and electricity, and fighting possums for food.

Samantha Stosur tried something a little different during her pre-season preparation. Picture: AAP

“I did one last year as well,” she said. “A group of us went down to Cradle Mountain, this year we went to Wilson’s Prom.

“You pack up all your stuff, organise it all. It just makes life really simple. All you have to do is go from A to B, carry all your gear, walk and eat.

“You have a chat along the way, and it’s just so refreshing to be out there. It rejuvenates you even though you’re doing all the kays walking. It’s so much fun.

“I’ve been able to do it twice in my last two pre-seasons and really loved it, so I’ll try to make that a yearly thing now.

“Tennis or no tennis, it’s fantastic. You meet some pretty cool people.

“It’s a bit annoying when you hear the possums trying to steal your food at night when you’ve strung it up, but you solve those problems.”

Originally published as Sam Stosur’s out-of-the-box Australian Open preparation