Jo Konta has admitted that an element of burnout was involved in the late season slide that saw her miss out again on the women’s equivalent of this week’ s ATP Finals.
The British No 1 was again edged out on the elite field of eight in Singapore by just one place, having looked a near certainty before losing four straight matches, beginning at the US Open.
Despite having had what was, overall, a highly creditable season in finishing ninth, she then split with coach Wim Fissette.
Jo Konta in action during a ‘Battle of the Sexes’ clash with Pat Cash on Friday
The pair had a light-hearted hit on the court at London’s Westfield shopping centre
In the past month she has had a break spent largely at home in London to reflect on a year whose highlights included making the Wimbledon semi-finals, and winning the prestigious Miami Open.
The unforeseen subsidence may have been a reaction to the strains of the grass court season, which turned out to be the high water mark.
‘There’s always going to be multiple factors and I think it was combination of burning out a little bit and not finding the right balance of rest and training,’ she told Sportsmail.
‘It’s always an accumulation of things – this was a season when I experienced a lot of things I hadn’t done before.
‘It was my first season starting as a top 10 player and with that comes more responsibility and more strains on your time and that’s an adaptation process for anyone. I felt I did the best I could and next season I will try and do better with handling everything.
Former British No 1 Greg Rusedski poses with the pair ahead of their match
‘It was the first time I had really gone through something like that and I don’t want to read into it anything more than I have to. It’s a great thing from me to learn from.
‘I’m trying to take my whole season as a whole, looking at the good and the difficult periods.’
Earlier accomplishments faded into the memory as a late surge from France’s Caroline Garcia saw her grab the last available spot for Singapore, denying Konta becoming the first British player in 33 years to make the event.
‘At that time I was more focussed on my body and myself,’ said Konta, who on Friday played a lighthearted “Battle of the Sexes” match against Pat Cash in London’s Westfield shopping centre organised by her sponsors Nature Valley.
‘Caroline is an incredibly good player and it wasn’t a surprise to me that she did well. I experienced something similar last season with (Svetlana) Kuznetsova.
Konta enjoyed a fine year on the court before tailing off towards the end of the season
The British No 1 split with coach long-term coach Wim Fissette at the end of a gruelling tour
‘If Singapore is in the cards for me one day I will look forward to that but there are a lot of other things to work for in the season.’
Konta will return to action at the Brisbane International in early January, where Andy Murray is hoping to make his comeback. She insisted that the events of September and October will not result in any hangover.
‘I’ve already moved on from it. However results go at the beginning of next season it won’t be a reflection of how this season ended. It will have its own challenges.’
Konta declined to shed any light on the curious-looking decision to split from Belgian coach Fissette, who is highly regarded enough to have already been snapped up by former world No 1 Angelique Kerber.
‘Wim and I got along great and I really enjoyed my season with him. It was time for both of us to make a change and we parted in a very positive way.’
There does not appear to have been any personal fallout, although he has told friends that there were disagreements about scheduling, particularly her decision not to play the Kremlin Cup in October when Garcia had not mathematically sealed the last Singapore slot.
Konta reached the semi-finals of Wimbledon where she was outclassed by Venus Williams
Konta has been at home, apart from a short family holiday in Hungary, and plans to go back into full training next week. She does not see the urgency in hooking up with a new mentor.
‘We are actively looking for someone but I’m not in a rush to make a decision. I’m very open I’m looking for a coach who will make a good match with me.’
It can be easily overlooked that Konta has exceeded the expectations of others in the last two years and some sort of correction to her meteoric rise was likely to occur at some stage. In common with an unusually large number of top 10 players it will be fascinating to see how 2018 plays out for her.