10 QUESTIONS TO... ANETA BUDZAŁEK

ANETA BUDZAŁEK has a big heart for tennis, both in her private life and in her work, where, among other things, she makes sure that amateur tennis in Poland has interesting tournament proposals and that its participants are well looked after.

Somehow we manage to fit a photo session into her busy travel schedule and in one of the most atmospheric tennis locations in Poland – the grass courts in Michałowek near Lowicz. The session “happens” to us very naturally, because that’s how Aneta is too 😊.

Kamila Borowska: Most of our clients are amateurs, for whom tennis is a passion to which they devote a lot of their time. You coordinate amateur tennis on behalf of the Polish Tennis Association, and you are also the initiator of the TOP SZLEM tournament series. Can you tell us more about these tournaments and their character?

Aneta Budzałek: TOPszlem is a series of tournaments organised on the model of the Grand Slam ones. We play on three surfaces – clay, grass and hard court. The tournament on clay is in Gdynia and Stalowa Wola, grass in Michalowek near Lowicz, and hard in Bartag near Olsztyn and Torun. This year will see the 4th edition of the series. At each tournament there is some kind of gadget for each player referring to the colour of the surface. We play in different categories depending on the location. All the details can be found on the TENIS OPEN POLAND website and facebook page.

What are the criteria you need to meet to play TOP SZLEM?

TOPszlem is a series of amateur tournaments open to all amateur tennis players. Everyone will find a category suitable for themselves, so I encourage you to take part in the tournaments. You can not only play tennis on various surfaces, but also have a great time in tennis society.

I know you combine your work smoothly with your passion for tennis. I’m curious about when and how your tennis adventure began.

I started playing tennis very late, at the age of 30, when I was still living in Italy. There I went to the nearest tennis club in Milan and started lessons with a coach. The sport had always followed me, but somehow the conditions were never right for me to try it.

I also attended cardio tennis classes, which were becoming more and more popular in Italy, but unfortunately at one of these classes I broke my triangular cartilage in my wrist and had to take a break from tennis for a year. When I returned to Poland I continued to learn. But sometimes I feel like I started to learn this “real” tennis about 3-4 years ago😊 I have super people around me who put all their heart into making me finally start to play in a meaningful way 😀

What are your tennis strengths?

Hmm… very difficult question😊 Because I’m at the stage of discovering my tennis strengths. And I see a contradiction here…. according to my coach I move poorly on the court, and according to the opponents I play against, I run to every ball. I thought I had a better backhand, and lately I’ve been scoring more points from the forehand.

Or maybe the strength is being aware of my own mistakes and trying to fix them on the next stroke.

I love tennis and even when things don’t work out for me, I know I’m putting my whole heart into the sport.

Oh yes, that tennis heart of yours can be seen at every turn! And what’s the best piece of advice you’ve received on court?

I’ve read dozens of books in my life related to psychology, including sport, and I sometimes wonder if the advice in the back of my head was given to me by someone or if I read it.

One piece of advice I definitely got was “have fun and enjoy every hit”, “the ball is your friend” and this is something I often repeat to myself, especially when I start to tense up unnecessarily at a match or training session. Lately, I’ve really liked “One wrong play can’t affect your confidence”. I also try to remember that “not every bounce has to be pretty; what’s important is that it’s effective”. Be warned, I have a lot of this in my head😊 e.g. “winning is born in the head, losing too”.

All this advice will surely help more than a few people 😊 If you could play on any courts in the world – which would you choose and why?

I don’t have a specific place in mind, but I would definitely choose courts located in some beautiful natural location, surrounded by the sea or a forest. As I love Italy, I have always been interested in some attractive courts in that country. I have often searched the Italian press for any interesting facts about it, so I would certainly love to play on the court in Positano. The court is next to the Hotel San Pietro di Positano and is situated right by the sea, between the rocks.

I looked at the photos out of curiosity and I fully understand your choice! And do you have a favourite tennis moment that you fondly remember?

I’ve learned to enjoy good strokes, so these moments are more and more. I enjoy every match and tournament I win. I have very fond memories of the charity mixed doubles tournament in Bytom, where Beniamin and I won second place, but above all we had a lot of fun and I learned a lot of things.

It was also an interesting experience to take part in a mixed tournament on the Nadal Academy courts, in which Igor (a 12-year-old player) and I won second place together. It was a tournament that paired young players with adults.

And it’s a very interesting formula with such a mix of ages. Now imagine you’re playing in a mixt tournament and you can choose any ATP ranked tennis player as your partner. Who would you play with and why? 😊

Given that I already have the best mix partner then I wouldn’t look for another on the ATP😉 lists.

I knew what the answer was going to be 😉 and I wanted to make it a little more difficult for you 😊 Well, but it didn’t work 😊 It’s now a question of a different nature – what do you suggest when choosing tennis outfits?

Above all, comfort and quality. I think that when it comes to women’s tennis, whether it’s amateur or professional, clothing plays a big role on the court. Anyway, in the case of amateur tennis, the well-known saying “‘if you don’t play good enough, you’re going to look fabulous at least” applies perfectly. Quite simply, we women want to feel good and we want to look attractive, because it gives us confidence on court. And when you feel good about yourself it completely changes your reality and your outlook on many situations.

I always ask about tennis dreams at the end – do you have any specific goals you would like to fulfil over the coming year?

I follow the principle ‘the way is more important than the goal’, so my focus is to bring something back for myself after every practice, every match. I would certainly like to diversify my game and improve my footwork on the court. And invariably the serve, which remains much to be desired. I’m also aiming for more repeatability and confidence in my strokes. And in general, I think the primary goal for this year should be to work on my confidence, which I often lack on court. Once I get more confidence and belief in winning then I feel miracles will start to happen😉.

And finally, I wanted to add a phrase I heard recently at a tennis workshop from one of the coaches and I really liked it: