Vukic’s Grit & Drive Fuelled By Parents’ ‘Built From Scratch’ Success

Last July, Aleksandar Vukic sat at home in Australia unsure if he would continue playing professional tennis. The Sydneysider was in the midst of a four-month hiatus as he recovered from an elbow injury. Still yet to crack the Top 100 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, he had doubts about his future. The Aussie remembers speaking to his parents and University of Illinois head coach Brad Dancer among others.

“They were the ones who supported me and have been through the thick and thin… It’s just in those tough conversations that I think you really just look within yourself and really see what you want to do in life,” Vukic told ATPTour.com. “[Playing tennis] is like with any job, it comes with its ups and downs. And I think, for me, there’s no limit to what I can do. There’s no expectation of what I can do. It’s just trying to do my best. I think I’m trying to do as much of that as I can.”

Vukic had been dealing with his elbow injury on and off for six months. He remembers sitting home watching Wimbledon instead of pursuing his dream.

“It was very tough. It gave me a lot of admiration for other guys that have gone through injury, and have had other problems that have been able to come back,” Vukic said. “I couldn’t have done it without everyone that has supported me.”

The “it” is one of the most significant climbs of any player on the ATP Tour in 2023. The week of 20 February, Vukic was World No. 201. If he reaches the third round of the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers in Toronto, he is likely to crack the Top 50 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings.

“It’s been a lot and it’s definitely had its moments of being overwhelming. But it’s also had its moments of [me] being really happy,” Vukic said. “I’m trying to enjoy it as much as I can and take each day as it comes because it is coming at me quick. And I feel like I’m just trying to enjoy it.”

Vukic’s college coach, Dancer, recalls the conversation he had with his former charge last year.

“Everybody has doubts, whether it’s about [their] body or results or something about what they can do. My role for Vuki is really just to sit and listen most of the time,” Dancer said. “He’s such a driven, intelligent, thoughtful person that I think lots of times he just talks things out to me. He’s talking all these things out and I’m listening to him, and I think in the process of those conversations, he was figuring out, ‘Yes, I am going to do this still.’”

Much of Vukic’s success since his comeback last August came on the ATP Challenger Tour, where he won a title and reached four finals. But his biggest moment during that stretch came just two weeks ago in Atlanta, where he advanced to his first ATP Tour final.

One year ago, the Australian was unsure if he would continue. But knowing countrymen like James Duckworth and Jason Kubler have overcome significant injury hurdles to enjoy success on the ATP Tour helped keep high his belief.

“I think once you start thinking, ‘Oh, I’m going be back and I’m going try to go for Top 100,’ it seems so far away. And it is,” Vukic said. “All you can do is take it day by day.”

The Australian has learned how to persevere from his parents, Rad and Ljiljana, who fled war-torn Sarajevo. Vukic’s older brother, Vlad, was born in Bosnia and had “really bad asthma”. When Vlad was one, they fled, as Rad did not want to enlist in the army and potentially get killed. The family heard bullets flying outside their home.

Ljiljana fled with Vlad and Rad later managed to blend in with another family to also leave the country. They all eventually made their way to Australia, where all they had was about $1,000. Aleksandar was later born in the country. Rad and Ljiljana “worked their way up from nothing” and became computer engineers. It is a story Dancer recently discussed with Vukic’s parents at Wimbledon.

“They just went over there with nothing, and they built themselves from scratch,” Dancer said. “And I think Vuki has that same grittiness that they obviously displayed. That’s really, really cool.

“His dad is a nervous nellie, which I love. I love it when parents are nervous. I always joke with his dad every time he’s got a close match that, ‘He’s doing that just to torture you, Rad.’ I think they’ve been a huge influence on his life, his dad’s passion, and his mom’s calmer demeanor.”

Dancer explained of Vukic’s personality: “I think he’s ridiculously kind. He’s very empathetic, so he has a really strong side of empathy for him. Probably a little bit too much, which is incredibly ironic, because I always talk about him, he’s like a shark in the water when he smells blood. So his sort of personal traits are very different from his competitive traits. And I think he’s got a unique switch that he can turn on when he competes and he is a ferocious competitor.”

After a first-round loss in Washington and a defeat in the final round of qualifying in Toronto, it seemed Vukic’s momentum had slowed. But he received a lucky loser spot in the main draw at the Canadian ATP Masters 1000 event and made the most of it by easing past 2022 Cincinnati champion Borna Coric.

“Before this match, I just had to take some time to myself and with everything that has gone on the last few weeks, it was overwhelming,” Vukic said. “I was just so grateful to have my parents, my family, my girlfriend, my coaches that have helped me all along the way and it’s one of those things where it’s just like ‘Jeez, this is it. This is what you’re dreaming of and this is the life that we’ve always wanted.’

“It is completely surreal, so hopefully I can get used to it, hopefully I can keep enjoying it, and hopefully I can keep going.”