Coaches' Corner: Russell on Fritz's comeback & what he learned from Wimbledon QF against Nadal
Taylor Fritz earned a thrilling two-sets-to-none comeback victory against Alexander Zverev on Monday in the Wimbledon fourth round. It was the third time he has rallied from two sets down and now he will face 25th seed Lorenzo Musetti for a place in the semi-finals.
ATPTour.com caught up with Fritz’s coach, Michael Russell, who detailed his charge’s comeback, what the American has learned from his previous major quarter-finals, facing Musetti and more.
You’ve coached Taylor in a lot of big matches. How would you describe how he was able to make that comeback?
His composure and collectiveness in the pressure moments and being down two sets to love was so perfect. It really was. He didn’t panic. He was playing excellent from the ground. Sascha was just having one of those service days where he was serving 80 per cent first serve, he’s averaging 133 miles an hour on the first and 111 on the second and hitting spots. So you look over at the scoreboard, you’re down two sets to love, but you’re playing well.
He played maybe a little tentative in the second-set tie-break. But in this sport, especially on grass, it’s the smallest of margins that can turn a match around, and Taylor did a great job of just staying in it and focusing on his service games, making sure he takes care of his service games and then kept putting the pressure on on Sascha. He was able to gut out a break in the third and the whole match just completely changes because now it’s two sets to one and you’re in for a dog fight.
How big of a sign was the double fault at 4-4 in the third set?
He hadn’t really double-faulted very much. So as soon as you see that, you think of the psychological factor, he’s feeling a little bit of pressure getting into the deeper end of the match. And that’s a big confidence booster for Taylor, because he sees that as well, because for two sets, the guy was infallible.
What was the message from the box?
It was obviously a lot of encouragement and just trying to give Sascha some different looks on the return of serve just because he was so comfortable hitting the spots and hitting them so big. And then for Taylor, just continue to play aggressive when he does have those chances, which is not always easy, because you feel the pressure when the guy is serving that well.
Taylor did a great job of moving the ball around, ripping backhands, absorbing Sascha’s backhands and mixing in a little variety with some drop shots at some key moments.
Taylor has always chased big goals. How do you balance being excited about this win, being back in a Grand Slam quarter-final, and wanting to go farther than he has before?
What you do is you always celebrate the victories that evening. And then the next day, you’re right back to work. It’s a brand new match, it’s a brand new tournament. You never want to have that complacency. You’re always striving to be better and have bigger goals and I think Taylor wants that. He knows that.
Being in these positions before, quarter-finals of almost all four Slams and he’s played quarter-finals here at Wimbledon, he wants to take further steps. It’s just keeping the routines, keeping that mindset, keeping calm and collected and composed in those pressure situations and having the belief in yourself that you can win titles.
<img src=”/-/media/images/news/2024/07/08/17/23/fritz-wimbledon-2024-monday.jpg” style=”width:100%;” alt=”Taylor Fritz” />
Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images
How much does it help that he’s had a few Slam quarter-finals already?
It helps a lot because he’s putting himself in these positions a lot more frequently. Quarter-finals of Australia played a good match with Novak, quarter-finals of the US Open again played Novak, quarter-finals of Wimbledon with Nadal. So he’s getting in these moments and playing quality matches against some of the best players of all time.
Being able to beat those guys gives you the confidence that you can beat anyone. And Taylor is one of the best competitors I’ve ever seen. When he steps on court, he believes that he can win every single match and he’s willing to sacrifice and put it on the line every time. That’s sometimes you can’t always teach, and so that’s why it’s really great to see him fighting back from two sets down and just [have] no panic. [He showed] great focus, kept the energy the whole time and gave himself another opportunity to play another match and be here another day.
What did he learn from the Rafa match here at Wimbledon two years ago, which he lost in five sets?
I think part of it is just making sure sometimes in big moments that you can step up. You don’t always have to resort to waiting for some errors or waiting for the other guy to be the aggressor. With Taylor’s game, he’s able to take the racquet out of the opponent’s hand with his serve and forehand and even today, being able to hit his backhand on a dime like that at that pace.
He’s really understanding that even in pressure moments, I can play safe, but I can still hit the ball big and play safe. And that’s what makes a great player into an ultimate champion at Grand Slams. He’s starting to believe that and we’ll see, he just has to continue to have that belief and mentality going into every round.
[ATP APP]He’s had some matches now with guys who serve huge and the next one is against Lorenzo Musetti, who is more of a creative, artistic player, and his game is not as based on the serve. How do you adjust the game plan for that?
It’s a combination. Lorenzo is extremely crafty, very talented. He’s won some big matches and been on some big stages and he’s a very good grass-court player. At the end of the day, Taylor knows he has to serve well, look for big forehands that he can be the aggressor and take advantage of his point construction. Be smart with it.
Not giving away too much, but he knows that he’s going to have to be aggressive and look to finish points. Lorenzo is going to want to get in a little more cat-and-mouse points and use his craftiness to get Taylor to be uncomfortable.
It’s obviously still far away, it’s the quarter-finals. But what would it take for Taylor Fritz to leave here as Wimbledon champion?
As you said, you’re far away. There are three matches against three phenomenal players. At the end of the day, Taylor, what he’s been doing, he’s going to have to serve great, hit his spots, well, keep poised in these moments when it comes down to pressure and be willing to step up and be aggressive, but stay within his limits.
Stay healthy and keep fit, because that’s a big part of the game. You play five sets and he’s got a great team around him. So it’s important, and you just keep that mindset, you keep it in the routines, and you go out there and you’re ready.
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