Five Minutes With... Veronika Kudermetova on romance novels, self-care and coaching plans

WATCH: Veronika Kudermetova defeats Jessica Pegula in the 2023 Madrid Open quarterfinals

The Internazionali BNL d’Italia has been a tournament full of upsets, but Veronika Kudermetova has remained calm and unaffected.

The 26-year-old arrived in Italy after a run to the Mutua Madrid Open semifinals, where she was made to work for her best result of the season. All four matches that she won last week were three-set battles, including a 6-4, 0-6, 6-4 victory over world No. 3 Jessica Pegula. But she hasn’t missed a beat as seeds fall left and right in Rome, and set up a mouth-watering clash with countrywoman and No. 23 seed Anastasia Potapova in the third round.

Kudermetova caught up with Baseline on the set of Tennis Channel’s Warm and Fuzzy shoot, where we talked about all things relaxation—from tuning into nature sounds to binge-reading romance novels:

Q: How do you take care of yourself mentally on a long trip?

KUDERMETOVA: I think the most important thing is to feel very comfortable when you stay in different city, different countries. Feeling the atmosphere that you feel in the home, for me that's important. To feel good in the hotel, it needs to be so nice, so calm, you know. And also, I take care about what I eat and what I read and what I watch.

Q: What kind of music do you listen to calm yourself down?

KUDERMETOVA: I like very easy and calm music. Like the sounds of nature, the sounds of the ocean, the sounds of rain. It’s really nice.

Q: Before a match, what kind of songs are on your playlist?

KUDERMETOVA: It depends on the mood. If I want to be more aggressive, maybe I will put something that's very fast. But I cannot tell you exactly which kind of music I listen to. As long as it's fast and gives some energy.

Q: Speaking of music, when was the last time you went to a concert?

KUDERMETOVA: I think it was a long, long time ago. When I was a kid I went with my mom to some concert. But I don’t have a very good memory of it, and I don’t think I enjoyed it because I was too young.

Q: Are you watching any TV shows or binging any Netflix series these days?

KUDERMETOVA: No, I'm not a fan of the TV shows or the Netflix. I'm more of a fan of reading.

Q: Alright, so which books are on your reading list?

KUDERMETOVA: I’m not reading one right now, but I have three books with me. And these are more about love stories, romantic stories. I really love books that are more for women.

Q: If you were planning a trip right now, where would you go and who would you go with?

KUDERMETOVA: My last vacation, I spent one week in Maldives and then I spent two weeks with my family... But right now, maybe if I can choose, I would go full time to spend a vacation with my family in my country.

And a lot of times, I have ideas in my mind that maybe I can go to help some kids and on the court and to spend time with them, give them advice. It will be a nice experience in the preseason to be a little bit of a coach.

Q: So you’re saying there might be a bit of tennis coaching in your future?

KUDERMETOVA: Yeah, it would be nice to have that different experience: To see how my coach sees me on the court, what advice he gives me, and what advice I want to give to the little kids. It's a nice experience and I would like to have it maybe next offseason.