Britain's Johanna Konta is not feeling pressure at US Open
Sunday 6 September 2015 20:36, UK
Britain's Johanna Konta insists she is feeling no extra pressure as she looks to continue her surprise progression in the US Open.
Konta has already beaten ninth seed Garbine Muguruza and 18th seed Andrea Petkovic to set up a clash against Petra Kvitova in the last 16.
The 24-year-old will move up from 97th place in the world rankings into the top 60 regardless of the result against two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova on Monday.
Her clash with Kvitova, however, represents another step-up in terms of both opposition and occasion, with the match likely to be given prime billing in one of Flushing Meadows' two largest arenas.
Konta's last defeat, 16 matches ago, came against Maria Sharapova in a similarly stellar setting on Centre Court at Wimbledon, and she admits to being awed by the experience.
US Open Tennis
"There was a lot of firsts for me in that match. I was playing Maria Sharapova, for one, but I was also on Centre Court at Wimbledon, and that was pretty special," Konta said. "I didn't quite let it all in."
There will be more firsts again on Monday – the British player has never played Kvitova before in her career - but Konta refuses to talk tough about the prospect of facing the fifth seed after overcoming her nerves to defeat Petkovic.
"The main thing is I'm just really enjoying the situation," Konta said.
"Even though I was nervous it was just really enjoyable to be out there and to get to experience it.
"I spoke to my mum after on the phone. My dad was going on about tennis, and my mum was like, 'Oh, you embrace this whole opportunity, this whole scenario that you get to experience'.
"That's what life is about, it's just enjoying an experience."
While Konta remains level-headed, her success has certainly not gone unnoticed, particularly by Andy Murray, who takes great interest in his compatriots' results.
"It's great," Murray said of Konta's run.
"I didn't see much of her last match against Muguruza. I watched most of the match (against Petkovic) in the hotel.
"She played very well. She played a very good tie-break, obviously the second set played some good stuff until she got into the winning position. That's always tricky.
"I believe that's the first time she's made the fourth round of a slam but even with the struggles closing it out, she managed to get there. That's a good sign.
"She's obviously been on an excellent run lately. She's very close to being the number one in Britain.
"It shows how high she could get, which is exciting, beating two players like Petkovic and Muguruza.
"It suggests she has the potential to go very high if she continues on the right path. I think that's very, very exciting."
