Sam Stosur has no qualms admitting she took a dive in 2014.
She’s quite proud of it.
Despite a frank admission of a less impressive season by her standards – where she finished just outside the top 20 for the first time in six years – the modest Stosur still finished as the top-ranked Australian.
The wheels well and truly fell off in October – in her case, it was her right wheel, so to speak – and it came to a head after claiming a sixth career title in Osaka, when a heel injury (a torn plantar fascia) required five weeks of rehabilitation.
Her turnaround in form, which had also included a run to the semi-finals of the Premier-level event in Beijing, before a three-set loss to Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova, was in fact cause for optimism.
The dive she speaks of was a silver lining during that five-week stint out of action on home soil.
“It’s been the longest chunk of time I’ve had back in Australia in many years so it’s been a really nice change and hopefully I’m a little bit fresher for the year’s start,” Stosur said.
It wasn’t all foot rehabilitation.
The 30-year-old suddenly found time to tick off a big item on the bucket list.
“Early December I actually took a week off and went and did a scuba-diving course so now I’ve got my open-water scuba-diving certificate, which is kind of cool,” she said. “I’ve wanted to do that for a little while and finally got the opportunity so that was a really good three days.
“I did it down in Sydney Harbour. Unfortunately the weather wasn’t great. It was when all those storms were hitting so the clarity of the water was horrendous but I’ve probably gone through the worst of it so now if I can pick the weather right I can get some nice clear water.”
Back to full training, Stosur’s summer will begin with a homecoming of sorts in January – a return to Pat Rafter Arena after a three-year hiatus.
“I just wanted to play a tour event again (having played Hopman Cup the past two years),” she said. “I’ve always enjoyed playing in Brisbane; obviously I would like some better results there and will try that this time, but it’s just playing at home. It really is my home tournament.”
A tough three-set defeat in the fourth round at the French Open back in May – traditionally her strongest major – to eventual champion Maria Sharapova was a fairly apt reflection of the direction many of her matches in 2014 took.
Having dominated Sharapova with composed aggression for the best part of two sets, Stosur faded badly in the third.
“Yeah I think last year I played quite a few matches like that where I maybe won that first set or came back in the second and wasn’t able to continue that throughout the third so there was certainly a bunch of matches where I felt for the most part I was right in there and playing really well,” she said. “It is important to try and get through one of those early on; it can really lift your confidence.
“From the start of the year I had quite a few three-set losses and before you know it that turns into five or six. It’s important to get through those because in other years I have done that a bit more.”
After a brief seven-month stint, the 2011 US Open champion parted with her coach Miles Maclagan. In what was meant to be an interim appointment, Nick Kyrgios’s former coach Simon Rea answered the last-minute call.
Six months on and Rea believes if his charge can stay fully fit, she could be well placed for a return to the top 10.
The tweaks made have been small, “things which most people to the naked eye, probably wouldn’t notice”, but at the very least, it is a fresh perspective.
“This pre-season time has really been the best chance for us to work on different areas of my game. We spent a bit of time trying to improve different serves, my backhand, always trying to make my forehand a bigger and better weapon,” Stosur said, adding that a slew of tour compatriots were helping her fine-tune her return.
“In Sydney, I’ve hit with Casey Dellacqua quite a few times. When I was in Melbourne I hit with Storm Sanders once, Daria Gavrilova, Olivia Rogowska; obviously a decent amount just with Simon, too.”
The goggles, flippers and wetsuit will be put on hold for the rest of the Australian summer.
A diving trip in her home state has been ruled out, for now.
“I’d definitely love to one day, to go up north to the Great Barrier Reef, that would be amazing,” she said. “I’d like to soon, but hopefully I don’t have any time cause I’ll be playing too much tennis.”
You can catch Sam Stosur in action at the 2015 Brisbane International presented by Suncorp and supported by Tourism and Events Queensland. The event will be held at the Queensland Tennis Centre from 4-11 January. Tickets are now on sale through Ticketek.
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