Cilic: My Backyard Court, Sacrifice & Making Kids’ Dreams Come True

Well, who’s going to work in the fields?

When my grandfather asked that of my father, who was 14, his fate was sealed: He was going to start his life in the tobacco fields. One of my father’s uncles, who was the director of a football club, had visited them in Medjugorje, a very small town in Bosnia-Herzegovina. He wanted to take my father to Croatia to pursue his education and let him play football, which was exciting, because he really loved playing the sport.

But my father had to stay home to support my grandparents in the fields and vineyards. My grandparents only knew how to make a living through difficult means, and they could not do it on their own. By the time my father had a vision beyond the fields — he eventually went into business — it was too late for him. Staying home early in life kept him from pursuing his childhood dreams. That was never going to be the path for me; my parents were determined that it was time to break that cycle.

Medjugorje has a population of less than 4,000, and it is known for Saint Mary appearances, not sporting success. The town’s first tennis court was built just a couple of years before I got into the sport, which became more popular with Goran Ivanisevic’s rise. My parents gave me a little push to get into tennis, especially because my uncle and cousin, who lived in Germany at the time, played. When I was seven, they visited our home, and that is when I started playing tennis. There were very few resources in the area, though, and the court I began on was uneven and in bad shape.

That is where my father’s love of construction came into play. He had never played tennis, only watched it on television. But while others in our area were building offices and spaces to rent out for corporations, he was instead imagining things my brothers and I could do with tennis. We had a massive backyard, and in 1996, when I was eight years old, my father decided to build a tennis court in it. My grandparents told my father that his idea was completely crazy. It really was insane.

^{Photo Credit: Marin Cilic Foundation}
But my father had a vision, and he wanted to give me the best opportunity to succeed in life. Before I knew it, big trucks started showing up to drop off clay. Underneath that was drainage, with sand and other materials. I still remember how we would need almost two hours to fully water the court during the summer because the water pipe connected to our garden hose wasn’t very big. We often spent more time watering the court than we did playing!

But I knew I was lucky just to have that court. Nobody from our area knew what it took to succeed in tennis. The few people who played did so for fun. Having the court was an opportunity in itself, as it fostered my love of tennis from the very beginning.

My family’s efforts made me quite responsible when I played. I took all my tasks very seriously. I was extremely diligent during practice and followed all instructions. I showed talent from a young age and practised with a coach in a nearby town 10 minutes away, but there were not many opportunities beyond that for me to grow as a player.

When I was 13, someone wrote an article about my dreams of making it to Wimbledon. But with the resources we had — as a family and as a town — it really was an impossible dream. There were not many players to practise with in Medjugorje besides my friend Ivan Dodig and his brother, Mladen. I had to make the biggest decision of my life when I was 14: stay home with my family and continue my education or move to Zagreb — the home of the Croatian federation’s training centre — to give myself the best chance of improving.

I knew it would be very tough to leave my family, which has always meant everything to me. But with their full support, I decided to make the move. There were quite a few difficult days. Luckily, Zagreb was close enough to home that I was able to visit home.

Every six to eight weeks, I jumped on the bus at 9 or 10 in the evening and arrived at 6 or 7 in the morning. I would sit there thinking about my dream of becoming a professional tennis player. It was quite unlikely, I have to say, but I was giving it my best shot.

I had to show up to every practice in Zagreb, and I never missed one. I took the opportunity very seriously and remained vigilant, even though it’s not so easy at that age, especially being away from home. I have to admit it was tough. No matter how great my Zagreb family was- I lived with my godfather and his wife- it was still a transition to a bigger city far away from the family and friends I grew up with. But I believe that part of the strength, extra calm and inner peace that I found came from my upbringing and my family’s support. I always had faith that God would guide me in the right direction.

I always try to think back to those beginnings, because sometimes we catch ourselves trying to look for more and more. I’ve found myself in situations when I wasn’t having fun on the court. When I first started playing, it was always for the joy of it. That is why through the highs and lows as a professional tennis player I remind myself to enjoy it.

^{Photo Credit: Marin Cilic Foundation}
At some point in your career, you start wondering if you’re ever going to win a big title or achieve your goals. But nothing is a given. Remember that newspaper article about my Wimbledon goals? My parents still have that at their home, and it’s a reminder of all the years of hard work it took to get this far. I reached my dream of playing at Wimbledon, played in the finals there and at the Australian Open, won the US Open, and have spent the better part of my life playing the game I fell in love with as a seven-year-old in my parent’s backyard.

It is incredible that I became a professional in the first place. I’ve fulfilled so many dreams I never thought I could make a reality, and I’ve long thought about how I could help others do the same. At first, I was not actually sure how. I always wanted to give back to the community and I always wanted to do more. But I knew it would be important to do so systematically.

I found the right recipe for that by reading Outliers: The Story Of Success by Malcolm Gladwell. The book is about what produces successful people, and Gladwell came to the conclusion that opportunity is what makes successful people successful, and I absolutely agree. If I didn’t have opportunities — if my parents didn’t build a tennis court in the backyard, if I never moved to Zagreb or if I did not meet one of my coaches at the right time — I probably would not have made it here.

^{Photo Credit: Marin Cilic Foundation}
That was the idea behind launching the Marin Cilic Foundation in 2016. We do everything in our power to help kids in need, whether through scholarships, motivational speeches or by providing proper guidance to point them in the right direction. There are many young talents throughout the world that come from developing areas or their families simply can’t support them. In the end that talent does not have the opportunity to shine. I hope for a world in which all children have an equal opportunity to reach their full potential.

We have two big ongoing projects at the foundation. One is building a playground in developing areas to support kids who do not have access to spaces for play, and the second is awarding scholarships to talented youth in sports, music, and STEM subjects. While I’ve been lucky enough to live my dream through sport, there are kids in many areas who struggle. Helping them gives me such positive feelings. When I am able to make them happy, I’m happy.

I know how these kids feel, because I was there. I remember sitting on that bus when I’d come home from Zagreb wondering if I would ever become a professional tennis player. I didn’t know what the future would bring and if my goals were possible. For all the kids asking the same questions today, I will do everything I can to help make their dreams a reality.

Learn more about the Marin Cilic Foundation

– as told to Andrew Eichenholz