Hi there,

The past few world-class tournaments have been really frustrating. I feel I'm playing well, but just can't get the wins I need to boost my confidence and get back up the world rankings (currently No.35).

A typical performance came against the world No.17 Mi Zhou in the Denmark Super Series. I took the first game in the first round of the main draw 22-20, but then lost the next two.

But I'm looking forward to this month. First up is the French Super Series, and then there is the Bank of Scotland Centenary International Championships at the Kelvin Hall. It's always so nice to be playing at home in Glasgow.

At the French, I have to go through the qualifying, but I'm actually quite pleased. It means I have the chance to string some wins together before, hopefully, making the main draw.

I also hope to do well in Glasgow. The Bank of Scotland event clashes with the Super Series tournaments in China and Hong Kong, and I did consider going to Asia. But there is no point going on a long haul flight just to suffer another setback.

Hopefully, I can stay at home, play in front of a home crowd and do really well. If I can reach the semi-finals in Glasgow then I will earn more ranking points than for losing a first round main draw in the Super Series. So there's plenty of incentive to do well.

The Scottish International Championships is always a great tournament, undoubtedly the No.1 on the European circuit. It's well organised, has great courts and is very well supported. The downside is that it means that the standard of entry is higher then for other European events - everyone wants to be there.

For the Scottish players, it is always one of the highlights of the season. It would be terrific if I could win the title - but one step at a time.

Something else I'm looking forward to this month is the announcement for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. I've been invited to a reception on decision day - and I really do hope that Glasgow is successful.

It was brilliant playing in the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. There was so much support, and Glasgow would be even better. Of course, I also loved Melbourne last year, when I won the bronze medal in the singles.

In Australia, I was on my own in my own wee bubble, and that probably took away some of the pressure. But I might still be competing in 2014 and I would certainly love to play in major Games in my home city!


Susan

Susan is supported by the Scottish Institute of Sport.  To view her profile, click here.