Tuesday 13 October 2015 12:31, UK
New British No 1 Johanna Konta is excited for 2016 after a superb second half of the season saw her reach a career high world ranking.
Konta moved into the top 50 for the first time in her career and has been in fantastic form since being knocked out by Maria Sharapova in the first round at Wimbledon.
She won two tournaments in Canada on the ITF Tour, made it to the last 16 of the US Open before losing to Petra Kvitova in three sets and beat world No 2 Simona Halep on her way to the quarter-finals of the Wuhan Open, where she took Venus Williams all the way.
And she is keen to ensure there is no let down early in 2016, when a further rise up the rankings is possible with few points to protect from this season.
"Next year I get to play a lot of tournaments that I hadn't been able to play before. It's an exciting time for me. I hope I can stay healthy enough to complete it," Konta told Sportswomen on Sky Sports News HQ.
"We need to put things in perspective, I haven't cured cancer. I get to play a game for a living, or I hope to make a good living out of it. I get to do something I love day in day out. It's not always easy.
"I'd say I'm a pretty lucky person I'm just enjoying the journey, good and bad. It's just about staying healthy and enjoying this journey that I'm on."
Konta's run took her above Heather Watson to claim the honour of being British No 1, but the 24-year-old is not getting carried away by her new found stardom.
She added: "I always had belief in myself. I was able to be comfortable on that stage, it was pretty special. Obviously it's the highlight of my season, of my career, results wise.
"To be honest I like to move on from things quickly whether its good results or bad results. The season keeps going the tournaments keep coming and going. It's always the next one. I always had belief in myself but it's always a nice surprise when things like that happen.
"I'm not saying I never believe that I could do it but I never actively thought ok this is the tournament I'm going to do this at. It is about taking one match at a time."
As for the future, Konta says all she can do is continue to work hard on her game and hope that results go her way despite having some pretty lofty ambitions.
She said: "If we are talking about dreams. When I was a little girl, it's being number one in the world and being the best ever female tennis player. But there is a big gap between dreams and reality.
"Like I keep saying I'm an ambitious person, I'd like to think I'd give my best every time I step out on to the court. But whether or not that ends with a win or a loss.
"I don't deserve to win any more than the player I'm playing against. It really is just about going out there and fighting your best, coming away feeling good that you gave your effort."
Watch repeats of this week's edition of Sportswomen on Sky Sports 5 HD at 7.00pm and 10.30pm on Tuesday and on Sky Living on Sunday at 11.30am.
