Introduction
In the context of women's tennis, Varvara Lepchenko should be mentioned among players who managed to have a career in this sphere. In spite of being neither a top-ten tennis star nor having a fancy debut, she was successful because her game was built on persistence and moving on. The left-handed baseliner who fought successfully with better-ranked players laid the foundation of a solid player reputation. To sum up, those followers of Varvara Lepchenko's career saw an athlete who proved her capabilities in tough battles on professional circuits.
Main body
The following information about Varvara Lepchenko's personal data proves that her career was not typical in several ways. The athlete was born on May 21, 1986, in Tashkent, which was a city in the Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union (at that period). It is important to note that Lepchenko's career did not start in any tennis country (France or Italy, for instance). As for the next aspect of her career, she moved to the USA as an immigrant. It means that she started playing in America as an unknown player whose skills grew into her success. It is worth noting that there is a pattern in the professional careers of successful players: before they start playing in major tournaments, they usually spend some time on minor events that allow them to build their games properly.
Moreover, the player worked hard and achieved good results at lower levels and won a lot of matches against stronger opponents (usually, such achievements make an excellent basis for a high-ranking game and career on professional tours). It is possible to say that Lepchenko became quite a famous player and got a lot of experience on the ITF circuit. At last, becoming a citizen of the United States in 2011, the player entered American tennis.
WTA breakthrough
The early years of Varvara Lepchenko's professional career passed quietly and the main reason for that is that there was no breakthrough match to write about. The athlete established herself as a regular WTA competitor and got into her top form in singles by 2012, achieving 19th place in the world ranking in singles. In addition to that, the top-20 achievement showed how long Varvara spent working in order to succeed and be better than others.
It goes without saying that Lepchenko played at Grand Slam tournaments. At the beginning of 2012, she impressed tennis lovers and gained fame by playing in the US Open tournament and participating in the French Open (she took part in it in 2014). Those events matter for the simple reason that Grand Slam tournaments make players become celebrities. In addition, the American played in other majors, including Wimbledon and the Australian Open.
Finally, it is necessary to mention that Varvara represented her country in the Fed Cup. So, as it can be seen, there was a certain stage when she fully became an American tennis player. It means that Varvara had to prove her professionalism and her love to the country she lives in now. Playing team sports gives other types of pleasure because the aim here is not only to achieve a high ranking.
How did it work?
It is worth mentioning that Varvara was not a tennis player who used flashy and spectacular shots or relied on strength (as most tennis women do), but she had other assets that make her unique and successful: creating a lot of pressure and stress, reading rallies and making rivals work harder in order to score. There was one thing which helped her to compete with other rivals: as a professional, Lepchenko managed to put opponents under tension by extending points.
Her left-handed baseline play could stretch opponents, and it involved a lot of baseline rallies, a lot of patience and defense (that is connected with reading rallies and using opportunities for turning them into counterattacks).
In other words, there are specific features that can be used by a lot of tennis professionals in order to compete with other rivals. Big players could not score easily, counter-punching players had to struggle with the left hand, on clay Varvara had a patience advantage, etc. Even if she was not well known before a particular tournament, she played as if she expected that she could beat everybody.
The larger meaning of the story and her professional career
The importance of Varvara Lepchenko's career in general consists in the fact that it is possible to create success outside of the spotlights. She did not start with a fantastic record in juniors and was never the biggest news at each tennis tournament, but her successful international career shows that consistency and hard work against higher-ranked opponents can lead to success in professional tennis.
To sum up, the tennis fan knows this athlete as one that moved to America from Uzbekistan, succeeded and proved her professional skills in a series of major tournaments, achieved a top-20 ranking in singles, and was the American representative in the Fed Cup.