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Read & Watch: Happy 38th Birthday, Roger Federer!

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Read & Watch: Happy 38th Birthday, Roger Federer!

Swiss enjoying another stellar season

As Roger Federer today celebrates his 38th birthday, the Swiss great is still going strong and is set to return at next week’s Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati, where he is a seven-time champion.

At an age when professionals are calling time on their global adventures, World No. 3 Federer continues to excel in 2019 with a 38-5 record and three trophies. He has lifted silverware at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (d. Tsitsipas), which marked the 100th title of his illustrious career; his 28th ATP Masters 1000 crown at the Miami Open presented by Itau (d. Isner) and a 10th Noventi Open (d. Goffin). He reached his 12th Wimbledon final (l. to Djokovic) and finished runner-up at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells (l. to Thiem).

In his 22nd season as a pro, and with 102 titles and 1,222 match wins, Federer is also closing in on Jimmy Connors’ all-time records of 109 crowns and 1,274 victories.

Federer isn’t the only ATP Tour star celebrating a birthday on 8 August. Canadian #NextGenATP star Felix Auger-Aliassime turns 20 today and plays sixth-seeded Russian Karen Khachanov at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal.

You May Also Like: Djokovic, Federer, Nadal & Wimbledon Top July’s Most-Read Stories

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Djokovic, Nadal, Federer To Reunite In Cincinnati; When Is The Draw & More

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Djokovic, Nadal, Federer To Reunite In Cincinnati; When Is The Draw & More

All about the ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournament in Cincinnati

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer make their return to action at the Western & Southern Open for the first time since their historic clash in the Wimbledon championship match. (Read More) Rafael Nadal, who is looking to win a 35th ATP Masters 1000 title this week at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal, will be the second seed in Cincinnati. 

Last year at the Western & Southern Open, Djokovic celebrated a historic achievement as he became the first player to complete the Career Golden Masters. After five runner-up finishes in Cincinnati, he finally claimed the one title missing from his Masters 1000 set with victory over Federer in the final. 

While Djokovic and Nadal will each attempt to win Cincinnati for a second time, Federer will be going for a record-extending eighth title at his most successful Masters 1000 tournament. He triumphed in 2005, 2007, 2009-10, 2012, and 2014-15. 

BNP Paribas Open champion Dominic Thiem, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Kei Nishikori, Alexander Zverev and Karen Khachanov round out the top eight seeds. John Isner, who finished runner-up to Nadal in 2013, will lead the American charge. 

Here’s all you need to know about the Cincinnati tennis tournament: what is the schedule, where to watch, who has won and more. 

You May Also Like: Nine To Shine: Djokovic Claims Historic Cincy Crown

Established: 1899

Tournament Dates: 11-18 August 2019

Tournament Director: Andre Silva

Draw Ceremony: Friday, 9 August at 6:30pm

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Schedule (View On Official Website)
* Qualifying: Saturday and Sunday at 10:00am
* Main draw: Sunday not before 2:00pm and 7:00pm, Monday – Friday at 11:00am and 7:00pm,
* Semi-finals: Saturday, 17 August, doubles at 1:00pm, singles not before 1:00pm and 6:00 pm
* Doubles final: Sunday, 18 August at 12:15pm
* Singles final: Sunday, 18 August not before 4:00pm

How To Watch
Watch Live On Tennis TV 
TV Schedule

Venue: Lindner Family Tennis Center
Main Court Seating: 11,614

Prize Money: USD $6,056,280 (Total Financial Commitment: USD $6,735,690) 

Buy Cincinnati tennis tickets, Western & Southern Open 

Tickets On Sale: Buy Now

View Who Is Playing, Past Champions, Seeds, Points & Prize Money Breakdown

Honour Roll (Open Era)
Most Titles, Singles: Roger Federer (7)
Most Titles, Doubles: Bob Bryan, Mike Bryan, Daniel Nestor (5)
Oldest Champion: Ken Rosewall, 35, in 1970
Youngest Champion: Boris Becker, 17, in 1985
Lowest-Ranked Champion (since 1979): No. 23 Peter Fleming in 1979
Most Match Wins: Roger Federer (46)

2018 Finals
Singles: [10] Novak Djokovic (SRB) d [2] Roger Federer (SUI) 64 64   Read & Watch
Doubles: [4] Jamie Murray (GBR) / Bruno Soares (BRA) d [7] Juan Sebastian Cabal (COL) / Robert Farah (COL) 46 63 10-6  Read More 

Social
Hashtag: #CincyTennis
Facebook: @cincytennis
Twitter: @CincyTennis
Instagram: @cincytennis

Did You Know… The Cincinnati tournament has come a long way from its humble roots, first played at the Avondale Athletic Club more than a century ago, to the grand-scale ATP Masters 1000 event held at the Lindner Family Tennis Center today. Past champions include such all-time greats as Ivan Lendl, Stefan Edberg, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic..

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Murray & Lopez Bow Out In Montreal

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Murray & Lopez Bow Out In Montreal

Bryan brothers advance on Wednesday

Andy Murray and Feliciano Lopez saw their unbeaten streak snapped at five matches on Wednesday at the Coupe Rogers in Montreal. This year’s Fever-Tree Championships doubles winners (d. Ram/Salisbury) pair fell 2-6, 6-3, 10-8 to Roland Garros finalists Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin.

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos scored the upset of the day by defeating sixth seeds and defending champions Henri Kontinen and John Peers 6-4, 6-2. Awaiting them in the quarter-finals are Andrey Rublev and Alexander Zverev, who rallied to defeat Peter Polansky and Brayden Schnur 1-6, 6-1, 10-8.

Seventh seeds and five-time champions Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan encountered few problems in their 6-3, 6-3 win over Argentines Guido Pella and Diego Schwartzman. Next up for them in the second round are Austin Krajicek and Michael Venus, who saved a set point at 4-5, 40/40 in the opening set of their 7-6(5), 6-7(5), 10-6 victory against Austrians Oliver Marach and Jurgen Melzer. The winner of Bryan/Bryan and Krajicek/Venus will play Robin Haase and Wesley Koolhof, who cruised past Alex de Minaur and Jordan Thompson 6-2, 6-2.

Bob and <a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/mike-bryan/b589/overview'>Mike Bryan</a> in Montreal 2019

Fifth seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau needed just 43 minutes to get by Cristian Garin and Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-3. The final opening-round match of the day saw Kyle Edmund and Taylor Fritz march on with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Nikoloz Basilashvili and Jan-Lennard Struff.

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Preview & Schedule: Zverev Looks For More Montreal Magic

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Preview & Schedule: Zverev Looks For More Montreal Magic

Nadal, Thiem feature in Thursday schedule

Alexander Zverev scored his first hard-court ATP Masters 1000 title two years ago at the Coupe Rogers. He looks to produce more great memories in Montreal during a packed third-round schedule on Thursday that also includes Rafael Nadal and Dominic Thiem.

The third-seeded German takes on No. 13 seed Nikoloz Basilashvili of Georgia for a place in the quarter-finals. They’re tied 1-1 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry, but Basilashvili saved two match points to oust Zverev two weeks ago in the semi-finals of the Hamburg European Open before clinching the title (d. Rublev). The Georgian is enjoying a career-best season that has seen him reach a career-high ATP Ranking of No. 16 in May.

Zverev has been finding consistency after a difficult start to the season. He took the title in Geneva (d. Jarry) and advanced to at least the quarter-finals in four of his past six events. The German is in tenth place in the ATP Race to London and a big week in Montreal could move him into qualifying contention for the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals.

You May Also Like: Zverev: ‘The Year Can Only Get Better’

Top seed and defending champion Rafael Nadal aims to continue his success in Canada when he meets Argentine Guido Pella. The Spaniard leads their FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry 3-0, including a victory this April in the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. Nadal seeks his fifth title in Canada as he pursues a successful hard-court title defence for the first time in his career. Pella has produced a career-best season that saw him clinch his maiden ATP Tour crown this March in Sao Paulo (d. Garin) and crack the Top 30 of the ATP Rankings for the first time.

“I am just going step by step,” said Nadal. “[I’m] back on court again tomorrow against a player who is playing great. He’s having the best year of his career. He’s super dangerous, winning great matches. I need to be ready for tomorrow.”

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Second-seeded Austrian Dominic Thiem puts his five-match winning streak on the line against No. 14 seed Marin Cilic of Croatia. Thiem won their lone FedEx ATP Head2Head three years ago in Brisbane. He’s coming off a title run last week on home soil in Kitzbuehel (d. Ramos-Vinolas) and scored his first-ever win in Canada this week against Denis Shapovalov. Cilic has had a difficult season by his lofty standards, but is always a threat on hard courts.

Other notable matches on Thursday include eighth-seeded Russian Daniil Medvedev taking on Chilean Cristian Garin and No. 16 seed Gael Monfils taking on rising Pole Hubert Hurkacz, who upset fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime will celebrate his 19th birthday with a match against sixth seed Karen Khachanov on Court Central.

ORDER OF PLAY – THURSDAY, 8 August 2019

Court Central start 12:00 noon
[14] Marin Cilic vs [2] Dominic Thiem
NB 2:00 pm
Felix Auger-Aliassime vs [6] Karen Khachanov
NB 6:30 pm
[1] Rafael Nadal vs Guido Pella
[16] Gael Monfils vs Hubert Hurkacz

Banque Nationale start 1:00 pm
[8] Daniil Medvedev vs Cristian Garin
[3] Alexander Zverev vs [13] Nikoloz Basilashvili
NB 6:30 pm
Adrian Mannarino vs [8] Fabio Fognini
[10] Roberto Bautista Agut vs Richard Gasquet

Click here to view the schedule for all other courts.

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Nadal’s No Danger Zone: Tell Me How It Is

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Nadal’s No Danger Zone: Tell Me How It Is

Spaniard believes in speaking truth to power

They say success breeds success. So does stability, according to Rafael Nadal.

The 34-time ATP Masters 1000 champion says that sticking with his trusted team over his 16-year career has underpinned his on- and off-court achievements.

Long-term relationships with coaches Toni Nadal, Francisco Roig, Carlos Moya, physio Rafael Maymo, manager Carlos Costa and publicist Benito Perez-Barbadillo have been a hallmark of his career. And, of course, his long-term partner Xisca Perello and family are never far from his side.

Importantly, he has nurtured an environment in which team members feel confident to speak truth to power, even when it may not be advice he wants to hear. That, Nadal says, is a point of difference with many of his rivals and their coaching relationships.

You May Also Like: Nadal Shakes Off Rust, Takes Montreal Opener

“Tennis has a problem that normally the player pays the coach and the physio, the team. That sometimes creates an atmosphere that the people who are around the player are a little bit more scared about saying the real things to the player,” Nadal said.

“The player needs to give them the confidence that they can tell you what is the real thing for them, not what you want to hear all the time. In my opinion, it is difficult to build that in a short period of time.

“If you have the same team for a long time, of course they know that they are not in danger if they say one thing or another thing.”

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The top seed and defending champion will again lean on his team this week at the Coupe Rogers, where he must reach the final to prevent Roger Federer from displacing him as World No. 2 when the new ATP Rankings are released on Monday.

But whether his outlook on commitment to team will work for others, Nadal was somewhat non-committal.

“I don’t know what the new guys thinks about it. Times change. I can’t say what works for me going to work for them.

“But for me personally, to have a good group of people around me helps me a lot for my education, for my preparation… growing during all these years.

“Important thing is to have a group of people around you that they feel free enough to tell you if you are doing the things right or not right, no? When you are changing people around you it very often is difficult to find this confidence.”

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Thiem Ends Shapovalov's Montreal Run

  • Posted: Aug 08, 2019

Thiem Ends Shapovalov’s Montreal Run

Austrian celebrates a career first

The stage was set for Denis Shapovalov to begin another memorable Montreal run on Wednesday. The #NextGenATP Canadian had the crowd behind him at the Coupe Rogers – a given in Canada – and a Top 5 opponent in Dominic Thiem, who hadn’t played a hard-court match since March and had been winless in Canada (0-5).

Thiem, however, had his own ATP Masters 1000 run in mind. The Austrian held off Shapovalov and his cadre of fans on Court Central 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to end his winless streak at Canadian Masters 1000 events.

“Every win is special in these tournaments because it’s only against great opponents,” Thiem said. “Against Denis, it was special because he’s a local hero. All the crowd was supporting him, so it was tough.”

More From Montreal
Nadal Shakes Off Rust, Takes Montreal Opener
Cilic’s Road Back To ‘Perfect Tennis’
Paul: ‘I Can Play With Anybody’

The second seed saved four of five break points and benefitted from some untimely unforced errors from Shapovalov, who has lost six of his past seven matches. The 20-year-old double faulted to get broken at 4-4 in the opening set, but Shapovalov came back strong in the second, ripping forehands and engaging the crowd with fist pumps.

The two were on serve at 3-4 in the third but Shapovalov dumped an overhead into the net to give Thiem the break and an opportunity to serve out the match. The Austrian pushed his winning streak to five after taking home the Generali Open crown on Saturday in Kitzbuhel.

“It’s never easy, the smashes. Maybe it was a little bit windy. Already the lights were on. These kinds of smashes, especially in a tough situation where you’re under lot of pressure, they look way easier than they are,” Thiem said.

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The BNP Paribas Open titlist will next meet Croatian Marin Cilic, the 14th seed. The Croatian beat Australian John Millman 6-3, 6-4.

Cilic reached his second quarter-final of the season last week at the Citi Open in Washington, D.C. (l. to Medvedev). The Croatian won the 2016 Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati for his lone Masters 1000 title.

Eighth seed Daniil Medvedev routed Brit Kyle Edmund 6-3, 6-0 to maintain his high level on the North American hard courts. The Russian was perfect on break points, saving all three he faced and converting all five on Edmund’s serve. Medvedev made the Citi Open final on Sunday, falling to Nick Kyrgios in two tie-break sets. 

He will next meet Chilean Cristian Garin, who improved to 2-0 at the Masters 1000 level with a 6-3, 6-4 upset against 12th seed John Isner of the U.S. Garin, a two-time ATP Tour titlist this season, played a bit like Isner, winning 89 per cent of his first-serve points (33/37) and saving all five break points.

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Rogers Cup: Rafael Nadal beats Dan Evans in Montreal

  • Posted: Aug 07, 2019

British number two Dan Evans pushed Spanish great Rafael Nadal in their first meeting before going down in straight sets at the Rogers Cup.

Evans, 29, lost 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 in a second-round match disrupted by rain in Montreal.

Qualifier Evans could not convert two set points before losing the tight opener, Nadal upping his game at the start of the second to take control.

Top seed and champion Nadal faces Guido Pella in the last 16.

Frenchman Richard Gasquet upset Japanese fifth seed Kei Nishikori 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 7-6 (7-4) while Croatian 14th seed Marin Cilic was a 6-3 6-4 winner over Australia’s John Millman and Wimbledon semi-finalist Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain beat Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman 6-2 7-5.

Nadal overcomes slow start to progress

Eighteen-time Grand Slam winner Nadal – playing his first match since losing to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon semi-finals last month – struggled to cope with the Briton’s aggressive and accurate approach play in an entertaining first set.

Evans has moved to the cusp of the world’s top 50 after an impressive year which has seen him rise from 190th to 53rd, proving again in Montreal against Nadal he has the ability to cause problems for the top players.

The Briton made the ideal start by breaking 33-year-old Nadal’s serve in the first game of the match and holding to love in the next, before the world number two fought back to 3-3 and go on to claim two set points at 5-4.

Evans boldly employed serve and volley tactics to save both and, after a rain delay lasting almost half an hour, dominated the early part of the tie-break to earn two set points.

But Nadal responded with a forehand winner and a smart second serve to save both, carrying on his momentum to claim the opener.

Nadal had lost only one of his previous 75 matches after winning the first set – against Nick Kyrgios in Acapulco this year – and it looked ominous when he broke Evans in the first game of the second set.

A second, lengthier rain delay disrupted the Spaniard as he allowed Evans to break back in the first game after the resumption, but a break of the Briton’s next service game proved decisive as Nadal wrapped up victory.

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An Honourary Signing In Montreal: John Isner To The Canadiens

  • Posted: Aug 07, 2019

An Honourary Signing In Montreal: John Isner To The Canadiens

American receives Canadiens jersey before second-round match

John Isner is a massive Carolina Hurricanes fan, and the American No. 1 loves hockey in general. But the 15-time ATP Tour champion has signed as a free agent with an additional team, at least for this week.

At the Coupe Rogers on Wednesday, Montreal Canadiens Senior Vice President for Public Affairs and Communications Paul Wilson presented Isner with his own Canadiens jersey, customised with his name and the number ‘1’ on the back. Although the Hurricanes will always be the American’s favourite team, Isner was thrilled to be made an honourary Canadien.

“I think it’s fantastic, especially in a city like this that just loves their sports,” Isner told ATPTour.com. “They support this tournament so incredibly well. The men, we come here every other year and they get really, really excited about it. But this city’s true love is the Montreal Canadiens, so [I’m] very honoured to wear that.”

You May Also Like: Isner Wins Thriller Against Thompson In Montreal

That’s not the only reason this ATP Masters 1000 tournament has been special, though. Isner has had two NHL players in Montreal supporting him: current Vancouver Canuck Antoine Roussel and recently-retired Alexandre Burrows.

“It’s very cool. I think in general hockey players really enjoy tennis. I enjoy hockey so much, so through that whole connection I’ve gotten to know a lot of very cool NHL players, a lot of them that I call my friends now,” Isner said. “Same thing here in Montreal, I have two buddies here… I’ve gotten to know them pretty well and they’re here supporting, so it’s very cool.”

<a href='https://www.atptour.com/en/players/john-isner/i186/overview'>John Isner</a> hits a backhand in Montreal.

Isner battled through a tight first-round match on Tuesday against Aussie Jordan Thompson 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(6) after two hours and 19 minutes. And on Wednesday he’ll face Chilean Cristian Garin. It doesn’t hurt that he has professional athletes to motivate him in his corner.

“Those guys are the toughest of the tough. Having a guy like Antoine sit and watch me play, I tell myself I need to stay focussed and stay as tough as possible out here because that is what these guys do all the time,” Isner said. “They’re taking pucks to the faces, they’re throwing gloves around. We’re not playing a contact sport. Yes, it’s hot out there and it’s tough, but I need to show as much mental resolve on the court as I can. I think I did a little in my match, so having him there helped.”

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Challenger Chronicles: Norbert Gombos

  • Posted: Aug 07, 2019

Challenger Chronicles: Norbert Gombos

Get to know the personalities and passions of the ATP Challenger Tour’s stars, as we explore their lives beyond the court.

In the first installment of the Challenger Chronicles, we feature Norbert Gombos.

In 2019, no player has won more matches on the ATP Challenger Tour than Slovakia’s Norbert Gombos. At the age of 28, Gombos is enjoying a breakout campaign behind a staggering 36-16 record and consecutive titles in Winnipeg, Canada and his hometown of Bratislava. His victory in his home capital was a special one, with friends and family in attendance.

Gombos’ career has had its fair share of successes and struggles, including surgery in 2016, a Top 100 breakthrough in 2017, a dip in form in 2018 and resurgence in recent months. After seven years fighting on the Challenger circuit, Gombos is finally reaping the rewards as he sets his sights on a transition to the ATP Tour.

It is all coming together for the Slovakian. He is fresh off a first tour-level quarter-final at the Citi Open in Washington, rising to No. 118 in the ATP Rankings on Monday.

Gombos

So, how did Gombos get here? Where did he get his start? What is important to him in life? We spoke to the Slovakian…

Norbert, it’s been an incredible summer for you. How do you think you performed over the past month and how happy are you with your game right now?
I am very happy with my game. Last year I was struggling the whole year. Winning those titles [in Bratislava and Winnipeg] for me is so important and finally I feel that I can play better and better and can start thinking about the Top 100 so I am really happy about it.

It’s been a busy stretch for you on all surfaces. How have you managed your summer schedule?
It all started on clay in Bratislava, but it was actually not in my plans at first. I wanted to prepare for Wimbledon by competing in Ilkley. The cut-off was so strong, so I had to play in Bratislava. It did not matter too much as I could play at the club where I practise throughout the year and that made me happy. I was so happy to win in my hometown in front of my family, friends and coaches.

I went to Wimbledon straight after, with no preparation on grass before the first match. I arrived at three in the morning, practised for 30 minutes and went straight on court to play the match. It was actually pretty impressive that I played well. Right after Wimbledon I went home to prepare for the hard-court season and travelled alone to Winnipeg. I won the tournament by myself with no help which was very good for me.

Gombos

What was the experience like to win a title at home? You rarely get to play in front of friends and family.
I was pretty happy about it. I practise there and it is a great club and they did a good job with the courts and overall organisation of the tournament. It was great for me to win the title there because a lot of people in Bratislava thought that my tennis was over after the last couple of years when I was not playing well. That made me more motivated as I really wanted to show them that I can play really good tennis.

The tournament was very strong with players like Klizan as well as other Slovakian Davis Cup players, so it was really special for me to win. My whole team, family and friends that have not seen me play before were extremely happy for me and I was so happy to win a tournament after a year and a half.

There are a lot of great champions from Slovakia. When you were growing up, did you feel the strong tennis tradition there and did that inspire you?
When I was younger, I did not follow tennis too much. My father put me on the court and said ‘you will play tennis’. He was really sporty so that is how I ended up in tennis. Years later, I was following a lot more tennis, especially Davis Cup. Our best Slovakian players like Karol Kucera, Karol Beck and Dominik Hrbaty made the final so it was a huge achievement for our country. I was more motivated after that to be like them and to compete against those players.

I was not very good in juniors. I was losing a lot of first rounds but my father was always seeing potential in me and supporting me all the time. I was so motivated to show everyone that I can play on the international stage. I was getting a bit older and started to play more Challengers and it went from there. I am so happy that I can play so well and I hope that the results will come.

Gombos

You had surgery in 2016 and then broke inside the Top 100 the year after. But last year was very difficult for you. What has the past four years been like with all the ups and downs?
It was difficult for me when I had my surgery. I lost a lot of time and I was losing all the time in the first round and dropped out of the Top 300. But I started to play well at the end of the year and won some Challengers. In two and a half months I moved from outside the Top 300 to inside the Top 130 and a few months later I broke into the Top 100. It was one of the best moments of my career. I could play the biggest tournaments and for me it was an amazing experience.

But the problem was, I did not defend my points after that and I dropped a bit. My game was not going well and I was expecting too much from myself all the time. I was very frustrated and low. As you can see, there were many highs and lows. And then this year I changed my coach and became more motivated again. We made a big improvement in my game and I am playing great again. It is great to be thinking about the Top 100 again.

What has been the biggest difference from last year to this year?
I am looking at things from another angle. Last year I was always thinking about how I was playing when I was Top 100. I was thinking about the past a lot. Now I am focused on the present and always thinking to improve my game. That is the main thing that I changed in my game and my thinking. I am focusing on myself and to be better and better every day.

Gombos

You are working with Ilya Marchenko’s old coach, right? Does he get a lot of credit for this improvement? He helped Ilya have a great run in his career too.
Yes, Tibor Toth is the Davis Cup coach as well. We started to work together in November last year. He has so much experience. He used to coach Dominik Hrbaty and Sergiy Stakhovsky too. I trust him completely and doing everything that he says. It is a very good way for me and hopefully I will do better and better results.

You were talking about being injured and dropping out of the Top 100 before finding your form again. What do you feel are the biggest challenges of being a professional tennis player?
I am so motivated to play ATP Tour events and it is not easy to get there. The biggest challenge is to get there and compete at these big tournaments against the best players. I would like to keep improving and get to play those tournaments regularly. I have to fight for every point, every result and hopefully play there in the future.

It is a new level from Challengers to the tour-level. The players get better and better and you have to keep working and improve your game.

What would you say to young Slovakian kids who want to become professional players like yourself?
To work a lot. Have a lot of motivation and just do your best. Try and win as many much as they can and do not be too hard on yourself. The results will come if you keep working hard. Put everything into your game and the results will come.

Are you married?
No, I am not. I have had a girlfriend for over five years.

Does she travel with you?
Sometimes. She works so she cannot travel all the time. It is not very often but it is really good for me when she is at the tournaments. Players love to have family with them. It is a lonely sport and it is important to have people with you. It is great to have your family supporting you and that is why a lot of players perform really well at their home tournaments.

Gombos

Your countryman Andrei Martin mentioned that there is a floorball league among Slovakian players. Is that something you play? What other sports do you enjoy outside of tennis?
They do, but I do not play because I am not very good at floorball. I love ice hockey and I follow NHL matches as well, but I support my country more than anything else. In the NHL my favourite team is the Chicago Blackhawks. I have not been to a game yet. I have only watched Florida Panthers play live. I hope one day I can go to Chicago and see a game.

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Marin Cilic's Road Back To 'Perfect Tennis'

  • Posted: Aug 07, 2019

Marin Cilic’s Road Back To ‘Perfect Tennis’

Croat reflects on early-season struggles and rounding into form

If you said Marin Cilic’s 2018 season was one of the best of his career, there would be little room for arguing otherwise. The Croat, who is the No. 14 seed at this week’s Coupe Rogers, reached a career-high No. 3 in the ATP Rankings, advanced to his third Grand Slam final at the Australian Open, claimed an ATP 500 title at the Fever-Tree Championships, qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals and led Croatia to the Davis Cup title.

But the 30-year-old struggled to maintain his momentum. He is currently World No. 16, which is nothing to sniff at, but Cilic has not made it past the quarter-finals in 12 tournaments, dropping from the Top 15 for the first time since August 2014.

“My first six months were not great. I felt just a bit drained from the season before, finishing late, it was very emotional with the Davis Cup, winning it in 2018,” Cilic told ATPTour.com. “We put a lot of emotions into that and just maybe my body felt a little bit tired from everything.”

A knee injury hindered him at the Australian Open, and also kept him out of the ATP 500 event at Rotterdam in February, which made getting the season rolling even more difficult. But Cilic is showing signs of progress, ousting in-form #NextGenATP star Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Citi Open before dropping a tight two-setter against Daniil Medvedev, who later made the final.

“Now I’m feeling really good. I had some time off back at home, enjoyed the Croatian coast [after Wimbledon], enjoyed my time and practised really well. I just felt I played quite good tennis in Washington and I’m hoping I can continue this really good throughout the summer.”

Cilic has finished inside the year-end Top 10 of the ATP Rankings in four of the past five years, so there was never a question of what the Croat is capable of. But perhaps some R&R and an additional voice in his corner will spur a turnaround.

The veteran began a trial period with former World No. 6 and 15-time ATP Tour champion Wayne Ferreira during the grass-court season. And the South African is not concerned about his charge ever finding his top level again.

“It’s not an issue that he’s going to get it back. The only difficulty is that the lower his [ATP] Ranking is, the harder your draw is, so you have to beat a lot better players earlier on,” Ferreira told ATPTour.com. “You have to beat better guys more regularly. He’ll get it back, he just needs to build on that. After last week, this will be a telling week. If he plays the same way as he did last week, then he’s back on. And he’ll be absolutely fine. Then it’s just having those wins and getting his Ranking back up and hopefully getting the Ranking to the level to where the matches are a little bit easier for him in earlier rounds.”

Ferreira has not been in the coaching game on the ATP Tour before. In fact, this is his first job working with a professional since retiring almost 15 years ago. But Cilic’s agent gave him a call ‘out of the blue’, and they’ve been off ever since, on a trial at least through the US Open. While there are some small things Ferreira is tinkering with in the Croat’s game, he says there is truly one key: confidence.

“He’s struggling a little bit confidence-wise. He hasn’t had the best year of results, so the first thing is trying to get him out of a little bit of a slump, making himself feel good, and from there building on some other things to improve,” Ferreira said. “I think he did a great job last week. I was very impressed with how he played. It was very positive again and he was doing the right things. But at the same time we’ve been working on a few things like on the serve and with a couple of things on the groundstrokes to try to help as well. You’ve always got to keep thinking about things to improve as well. So it’s been good, it’s been a good time. But the initial thing is getting him over the confidence thing.”

It’s a normal problem to have, though. No player is perfect, after all.

“Losing your confidence, everybody has it. It’s the toughest thing in a way because there isn’t really a set trigger that gets you out of it. Winning matches is really what it comes down to, but if you’re feeling nervous and playing tight, sometimes it doesn’t always happen,” Ferreira said. “But it’s also one of those things that doesn’t take a lot to turn around as well. It’s just finding that happy medium somewhere. For him it was more just playing a few more matches in a row, that was helpful. But when the matches are tighter, playing the big points well, it’s a confidence thing.”

One of the things the Cilic camp has been focussing on is his first-serve percentage. Ferreira feels that when Cilic lands his first delivery, he can win a lot of ‘free points’, get through his service games more easily, and build more confidence that way as well. In addition to his Croatian holiday, Cilic also spent a week where Ferreira lives — in Hilton Head — to get to know one another even better and continue working on his game.

“It’s been so far really positive in every sense. Wayne is a great guy, really down to earth and a very, very smart person as well. He had an amazing career,” Cilic said. “The way he played, I admired it a lot. He was a hard worker on court and he brings that every single time when I’m on the court, so it’s just a joy to work with him and hopefully we can have a really long relationship, and an extremely successful one, too.”

Ferreira says since he hasn’t been travelling the Tour, he has been keen to pay close attention to all the players, practices and so on. And with what he sees in Cilic, he is plenty confident that things will move in the right direction.

“He strikes the ball so impressively well. It’s so clean and so hard, he is very solid everywhere. There’s no weakness in his game at all. He’s very strong mentally. Okay, he struggled a little bit on the confidence, but he’s very focussed. His groundstrokes are great. He has the ability to beat anybody,” Ferreira said. “He has the ability to come out and just play awesome, perfect tennis.”

Even if his ATP Ranking has slightly dipped, as soon as Cilic gathers momentum, that will be a scary thought for the rest of the ATP Tour.

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