Paris: Aravane Rezai used to practise until dark with only the headlights of her father's van to illuminate her shots yet now the new darling of Paris is taking the full glare of the French Open spotlight in her stride.
Her victory at the Madrid Open last week propelled Rezai into the public eye ahead of Roland Garros and she is perfectly happy to cope with the pressure befitting her new status.
"When you play tennis, you make sacrifices to reach that level so this pressure, you like it, it comes with the reward," Rezai told reporters following a 6-1 6-1 crushing of Canadian qualifier Heidi Al Tabakh in the first round of the French Open on Sunday.
Rezai, who beat Justine Henin, Jelena Jankovic and Venus Williams en route to the Madrid title, is now 16th in the world.
Born in St Etienne to Iranian exile parents, Rezai was at first coached by her father but now trains under the guidance of Patrick Mouratoglou, the man behind Marcos Baghdatis's early successes.
The beginning
Rezai has dual nationality and even represented Iran twice at the Muslim Games.
She started to play tennis on cold nights in St Etienne, jeered by passers-by due to the shrieks that already punctuated her shots.
The public courts where she practised were often lit by the headlights of her father Arsalan's camper van when she would train until 11pm. Then she had to do her homework.
"She did not have the same childhood as the majority of people," Mouratoglou told media earlier this week.
"It was tough for her, she has this violence inside her and she knows how to bring it out. That's her strength."
Pinnacle
No wonder Rezai is enjoying her new life at the tennis pinnacle.
"It's the same for the other players. If I am under pressure, the others also are. But when you accept the pressure, you free yourself from it," added Rezai.
"But here, I will not read the papers, I will stay with my team."
