Garbin states she is “honoured” to guide this group of individuals, which includes the soaring Paolini.
The Italian wants the world No.15 to channel her favourite poem ‘Invictus’ when taking on the double defending champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday afternoon.
The William Ernest Henley piece finishes with the lines, ‘I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul.’
“I want her to feel empowered to play Iga without fear, that is the key,” maintained Garbin. “If she is trying to do her best, hitting the ball as usual, if she’s happy on court, then she has a chance.”
So how do the Italians keep up this unrivalled, sustained success?
“We just have to keep working harder and harder, providing our best for the players. We need to be happy when we achieve goals, but then to look ahead,” added Garbin.
“Tennis is constant, every week, you don’t have a chance to appreciate it all mentally. Sometimes you need to sit and say, ‘Yes, we did a good job.’ Life teaches you to enjoy this, to love the process and not too much the results.
“When you love the process then you do the right things, you are rewarded.”