PATTAYA CITY, Thailand - One of the most intriguing stories of last year was the comeback of Kimiko Date Krumm - Japan's first Top 10 player, who made it all the way to No.4 in the world before retiring in 1996. Having played predominantly on the ITF Women's Circuit to begin with, she begun playing on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour again in the fall and this year is planning on continuing to move in that direction as her ranking rises up and up. And this week she'll be our blogger, straight from Pattaya City.
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Friday, February 13, 2009
I went on the tournament-organized tour of Larn Island today. There were about 40 people who went on the tour, including tournament directors, staff members, line judges, umpires and, of course, other players. It was a great experience.
We were told to meet at the beach in front of the hotel at 9am, and I like to be on time so I arrived there at 9am, and I was actually surprised everyone was there already! Earlier in the week, we were told that the player party would start at 6:37pm - it's one of the tournament director's little jokes, to pick really random times for things to start - and I actually got there exactly at 6:37 that day! But I was one of the first people there, so I didn't think any of the people going on the tour would be there right on time today :)
They chartered three boats for us, and it took about 20 minutes to get to the island. When we got there we saw they had reserved some beach chairs for us, so I picked one with the most sun and just sunbathed for about an hour. When it got too hot I went into the water for a little bit, then caught up on some reading, and did some more sunbathing, of course. Around 11:30am we had a big lunch barbecue, but it was more like a buffet, as the hotel brought all sorts of food and arranged it like a big buffet right there on the beach. The food was really great. Afterwards I did some more reading, swam, played a little bit of beach volleyball and that was pretty much it. It was a day of relaxing. Some of the players had to leave because they had matches, but I chartered my own boat back to the island a little later because I didn't want to leave so early!
I'll be leaving Pattaya tomorrow night. I'll be doing the regular routines tomorrow - getting my prize money, talking to the tournament officials, packing...
Hopefully you've enjoyed my blog this week, I enjoyed writing it and am happy I was able to talk to you all again. I hope to do another one soon! I'll leave you with the last set of questions and I will write again soon...
Kimiko :)
P.S. I think the elephant at the player party was the highlight of my trip here - so I am putting that picture back up!
Which tournaments are you playing in the next weeks? - Manuel, Spain
I will be playing a $50,000 ITF tournament in Clearwater, Florida in just over a week, then if I can get in, I'll play in Monterrey, Mexico. I also want to play at Indian Wells and Miami, but it all depends on whether my ranking will get me into them, at least into the qualifying. That's the plan for now!
Which type of food do you have more at home, Japanese or German? - Tanaka, Hong Kong
I would say more Japanese food, especially when we're in Japan.
What's your favorite tournament and Grand Slam? - Ian, USA
For WTA tournaments, since I haven't played a lot of tournaments for 12 years, I'm not sure! A lot of the tournaments have changed, and I've changed too. But as for Grand Slams, the one I like most is Roland Garros. I love the city and the food, and the atmosphere of the tournament is great. The one I wanted to win the most was Wimbledon, the one I felt I was closest to winning was the Australian Open, and I have a lot of friends in New York so I also love being at the US Open.
How does your fame in Japan affect your everyday life? - Rich, UK
It's quite difficult to go out by myself - I can't get on the public transportation because everyone notices me. But there are definitely some pluses, like if a restaurant is fully booked they manage to get me a table. So there are pluses!
What was the most memorable match of your career? - Mark
I would say the 1996 Wimbledon semifinal against Steffi Graf. That one went on for two days because of the sunset. It was a very close and memorable match.
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Thursday, February 12, 2009
Hi everyone! I'm just writing a quick message to say I will be in Pattaya City one more day, so please send me more of your questions! Today I practiced and took the rest of the day off, so I don't really have anything too exciting to talk about. But tomorrow I have an island tour to go on, which should be really fun.
Talk to you all again tomorrow :)
Kimiko
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Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Well, I had my first singles match today against Magdalena Rybarikova, the No.8-seeded player here, and unfortunately I lost, 62 46 64. It was a tough match. I was definitely ready for the match - I came to Pattaya more than a week ago and she only arrived a few days ago, so my goal was to win the first set and go from there. However, I couldn't do it. In the second set I just tried to focus on the ball and make less mistakes and I won, 6-4. After the second set we had a 10-minute break due to extreme heat. I was leading 2-1 in the third set when I started cramping in my legs, just like I did at the Australian Open. I took a medical time-out, but the cramps didn't really go away, so it was difficult to concentrate. There were moments I could have gotten back into the match but I was afraid to put too much force because the cramps just wouldn't go away. I lost my serve at 4-all then she served it out. I came close, but you just have to win those matches!
I've never really had a problem with cramps before. I don't want to think it's about age! I'm pretty sure it's not about that. It might be something else, and I'm going to see a doctor and my trainer when I get home, to see if they can help me figure it out and work through it.
It's too bad the tournament is over for me. I've been getting tough draws, but when you're playing on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour you'll have lots of tough players to play. I just need to keep on playing, but I need to start winning these matches! The positive is that I was able to play a full final set against a Top 50 player, which gives me confidence to keep playing and keep touring this year.
Thank you for all of your questions, I've answered some of them below. I'm not sure if I'll be able to write again tomorrow, so if not, thank you all for reading, and I'll be in touch again soon!
Kimiko :)
What do you feel were your biggest accomplishments in your career before you retired? - Matt
Being the first Asian to make it to the Top 10 was my proudest accomplishment, and proving to the world that an Asian woman can be in the Top 10.
I would love to look as good as you when I am your age! What kind of diet do you follow, and would you consider writing a health/nutrition book in the future? - Michel, Egypt
I don't really have a specific diet. I just try to eat and sleep well. I also practice pilates - I actually have an instructor's licence for pilates, so I always try to incorporate that into my daily workout routine.
Can you tell us about how you used to always bring your rice cooker and other Japanese stuff overseas? - Vince, Hawaii
I still bring my rice cooker, rice and Japanese sour plum, and I make rice balls when I'm travelling. I eat them before my match. I've done that for a long time!
As you are married to German Michael Krumm, is there a chance you'll play in your husband's native country this year? - Daniel, Germany
My family really wants me to play in Germany, but with my ranking right now I don't think I can make it at this point. Hopefully I will, of course!
Who is your best friend on the Tour? - Tom, Israel
I don't really have best friends on the Tour now, but I talk to Helena Sukova and Arantxa Sánchez-Vicario over e-mail, so I think that would be my answer!
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Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Hello everybody,
I had my first doubles match today, my partner was Sesil Karatantcheva from Kazakhstan. Unfortunately, we lost. I haven't had a chance to play doubles this year until now, because my doubles ranking is very low. This was the first time I've played doubles since November, actually. I was trying to get my rhythm but couldn't get into a groove until the end. It was also the first time I played with Sesil, and we probably need to get used to each other a little bit more! Our opponents were the hitter type, too - they had a good singles rhythm going. We lost the first set quickly, but pushed them to a tie-break in the second set.
My practice today was with Tamarine Tanasugarn. It's always very nice to see Tamarine around and play with her. I hope she does well this week.
The top-seeded player, Vera Zvonareva, won today, and I think the tournament is going very well so far. Tomorrow I have my first singles match of the week. I'm first on at 3pm, so I'll rest up tonight and try to switch my mind to tomorrow.
Thank you for all of your questions. I've answered some of them below.
Talk to you again tomorrow :)
Kimiko
Do you still miss Japanese food when you're travelling like you used to? - Asako, Japan
Not as much as I used to! Now I try to enjoy the food where I am. I've been eating a lot of Thai food since I got to Pattaya City, it's really good. I still bring my rice cooker with me though, because I need to eat my rice balls before matches - just like I used to do 13 years ago when I played!
What is your goal this year in terms of ranking and which tournaments to play? - Kazuhiko, Japan
I don't really have a specific goal for ranking. I'm just considering my physical condition, and seeing how far I can go. So far, it's going very well. I would like to compete on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour as much as I can this year, as well as playing qualifying at the Grand Slams if I don't get in the main draw.
Did you watch any tennis when you were retired, men's or women's? Do you have a favorite player? - Sylvia, France
I did some commentary for Japanese TV, so I did go to a few Grand Slams when I was retired. Other than that I didn't see so much tennis. But my favorite player was Justine Henin - it's too bad she's retired now.
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Monday, February 9, 2009
Hi everyone,
This is Kimiko Date Krumm - some of you old-timers may remember me from 13 years ago! I returned to tennis last May. This is my first time doing the blog on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour website. This was not done when I used to tour, so I'm very excited to write to you all from Pattaya City this week.
I started this season in Auckland, New Zealand, then went to Australian Open qualifying. I was happy to make it into the main draw, and although I lost in the first round to Kaia Kanepi, it was good fun. I went back to Japan for a week or so after the Australian Open, but since it's very cold in the winter in Tokyo, I came here at the end of January to get ready for the weather and the Pattaya Open.
The tournament began today but I didn't have a match, so in the morning we went to the city and planted golden flower trees. Yellow is the royal color in Thailand, and when it grows it'll have yellow flowers. I hope to come back one day and see it fully grown! The rest of the day I just practiced, and I just came back from dinner before writing this.
I have to tell you about the elephants too. There is a jungle tour here where you get to ride elephants, but I was too busy to go on it. So I was really excited when an elephant came to the player party yesterday! It was such a nice surprise. I was taking lots of pictures and feeding bananas to it, and then I learned we were allowed to go on them, which I was so excited about. I had a lot of fun :)
I'll talk to you all again tomorrow!
Kimiko
