Jessica Pegula sees no reason to hide her disdain for arduously repetitive sessions, slogging it out on the practice courts between match days.
While she accepts them as a necessary evil in her pursuit of major glory, the third seed has at least devised a better substitute during the Australian Open to keep coach David Witt satisfied she is reaching her potential.
On Monday, she returns for her third-round doubles match with compatriot Coco Gauff.
Lightening the workload somewhat, she departed the mixed doubles with Austin Krajicek at the first hurdle.
“Honestly, I don't [enjoy practice], it's terrible,” Pegula said, following a 7-5 6-2 win over Barbora Krejcikova, the 2021 Roland Garros champion and former world No.2.
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"I don't really want to go out and hit for 45 minutes, it's so boring. I'd much rather play doubles with Coco. We've had great crowds here, it's been awesome.
"It definitely is more fun to compete and keep playing to me on those off days than just sitting around and letting the stress build and nitpick everything that can go wrong, so I just like to play.”
Pegula said she felt more at ease ahead of her third venture to the last eight in Melbourne.
She is yet to drop a set and was a leading light among the US team's United Cup triumph on the eve of the season's first major.
Pegula's three singles quarterfinals at the Slams in 2022 ended in straight-sets defeats to the top seed and eventual champion – to Ash Barty at Melbourne Park, then to Iga Swiatek at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows.
With Barty no longer on tour and Swiatek shown the door on Sunday, the 28-year-old has firmed up as the frontrunner to capture her maiden major.
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“I would say it feels different. It's nice that I don't have to play either two of them when they're really hot, like right in a quarter,” Pegula said.
“Maybe if I would have played someone else, who knows, maybe I would have already had a semi.
“I guess I feel more confident, I feel more experience being in this position. I will still have a tough match next match no matter what, but I think I definitely feel maybe a little bit more settled than I have in the past in those tournaments.”
If she needed any justification for her doubles-over-practice strategy, she need only have looked at her fourth-round opponent’s record.
Krejcikova claimed her Grand Slam singles breakthrough in Paris two years ago after she had already landed two women’s doubles and three mixed doubles majors.
Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka or sixth seed Maria Sakkari’s conqueror, Zhu Lin, now stand between Pegula and that first Grand Slam singles semifinal.
“I have a great shot here,” she said. “I think I'm playing probably, all around throughout the whole tournament, I've been playing the best I have in any of my other Grand Slam quarterfinals. That I think helps.”