Alexander Antonitsch on Filip Misolic: "There's no question for me that he'll make it to the front"
Alexander Antonitsch showed a golden touch by awarding a wild card to Filip Misolic . In an interview with tennisnet.com , the tournament director of the Generali Open in Kitzbühel reviews the past tournament week and explains what can be expected from the young Styrian in the future.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Aug 01, 2022, 06:31 pm
Mr. Antonitsch, seven days of tennis festival in Kitzbühel are now history. How do you sum up the entire issue?
One has to say about the entire issue: great. It was one of the best atmospheres that we have ever had here in Kitzbühel. But the start was a bit bumpy for me, to be honest, even if you quickly forget it: because we had problems with the pitch, but then we managed it really well – thanks to the commitment of the entire crew have so that it was playable. He wasn't perfect - no question - but he was playable. And of course the cancellations, which hurt brutally: Losing number one and two late in the afternoon on Sunday is tough. But we've already spoken to the ATP, there have to be rule changes. People are now looking at how to help tournaments that are caught completely off guard. But all in all I think the positive outweighs the negative. The successes of the Austrians starting with the qualification, but of course also before that, Dominic played very well again in Bastad and Gstaad and also reached a quarter-final with us. You could see how much he can inspire people. And then Filip Misolic took over almost seamlessly.
To what extent was Filip Misolic also a certain party savior for the tournament in Kitzbüehl after the painful cancellations?
We were almost sold out on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. But of course it was good for the atmosphere and maybe one or the other ticket that was added. But I'm especially happy for the boy. I can still remember contacting him and telling him he's an issue - probably even for the peloton. Then he was completely surprised. I just liked the style. I saw him train a few times in Südstadt, that was a while ago. I know him, of course, because my daughter played when she was young. I think she even trained with him once or twice in the southern part of the city. And he impressed me because he was one of the few who didn't whine when they made a mistake. Actually from the moment he arrived in Kitzbühel he was super friendly, super nice. Not that it's an accusation: he was almost a bit too nice when I asked him how the place was. He was the first player on center court. On the other hand, of course, he also played so many futures, he's probably experienced worse (laughs). And then it was impressive for me how well he trained every day, took the chance and prepared well. He told me beforehand that he would try to play in Gstaad - which he did. And everything was coordinated with Lorenz Fink and his team for Kitzbühel. That paid off. He was a bit lucky with the draw, which he made with me. Even if you're lucky in the draw and you get a lucky loser who was about his collar size: You have to defeat him first. He might have been a bit nervous at first: first ATP tournament, opening match. But then that's a story: Against Pablo Andujar: Sure, he made a lot of double mistakes, but he also gave him problems from the baseline. That's not a bad clay court player, after all he beat Thiem in Paris or Federer in Geneva on clay court. And against Lajovic: The day was unique for me anyway. So that a player comes back from set and 3:5 in the second set - and how come back - and then actually dominates him in the third set, that's something special. That's not a bad player either, after all he was in the Monte Carlo final. Then he goes out again on the same day and starts unbelievably against Hanfmann, then maybe he was flat, but then he comes back from a 1:4 in set three with two breaks: That just shows what wood he's made of. Neither in the set and 3:5 deficit, nor in 3:1 for him in the third set, did I see that he had shown exaggerated emotions. Well, he doesn't hype when he plays well and he doesn't disappoint and shows everyone how bad he is once he's behind. And that is probably one of its great strengths. From a tennis point of view, I find him extremely solid, of course the backhand is perhaps the bigger weapon. But he will also dare to do more with the forehand, to go into the field more. The serve can definitely be improved, no question, but he knows that best. I also think it's cool when he checks that he's playing a really solid, technically clean volley. From that point of view, he says himself, he still has to work everywhere, but he also knows that. But rarely have I seen a wild card used so well. We are all super happy and happy for him.
Of course, the successes are also reflected in the world rankings, where Filip Misolic is already well into the top 200. Where do you think he is with his tennis and where will the journey go in the coming weeks and months?
I'm happy to see that. I - and probably he himself - can't really assess him on hard court yet. Those are steps he's going to take now, he just has to go over to the US, he has to play US Open qualifiers. 130th place, that sounds great now, but you might get into a qualification in terms of ATP, at the indoor tournaments it will be difficult for you to qualify. So you have to prove yourself again at the Challenger level and do the next push so that you're between 70 and 80, where you then have a realistic chance of getting into a peloton once and being solid in the qualifiers. And then it will be decided how fast the journey will go. There's no question for me that he'll make it to the front if he stays healthy. The only question is how quickly.
You have already mentioned that hard courts have not always been Filip Misolic's favorite surface in the past, and he explained that himself after the tournament. But now it's time to switch to hard court with a view to the US Open: What do you think does Filip Misolic need in terms of play to be able to play tennis successfully on this surface?
It's like you have to change the court position slightly so that you can't fall so far behind that you can't start from the back. You have to dictate on hard court, it's easier for you to take the ball earlier because the bounce is always the same - normally. I believe that active, aggressive footwork and the will to follow will play a role. And of course the serve, which is already an issue on hard court. On clay court you can sometimes help yourself with good kick serves to the outside or to the body, on hard court opponents find it easier to return on the second serve. I think it will be a bit of a change. But he has the punches, the technique.
It's not a matter of course for a 20-year-old who is playing his first ATP tournament to withstand all the pressure - especially at the home tournament. How did you experience Filip Misolic behind the scenes here?
Where I saw him was after beating Lajovic. He was relatively flat then, as was the break before the Hanfmann match. But he was actually totally relaxed, he drank Red Bull Cola on the pitch because he said: "I was just empty, I needed it." And that really gave him a boost. Inside we told him that we still had to wait - he had been at the facility since half past seven - and we canceled at 10 in the evening. During that time he was playing table tennis, I thought I couldn't see properly. And he was totally relaxed. But the most impressive thing for me was how he played the tie break. Where you have an incredible amount of time, where you can actually sleep all night, that you are 1-0 up in the tie-break, that the game was actually over, that you actually have a huge chance. You have to think about what these 150 points mean for such a player: You get 10 or 20 points for a futures win (note: a win in a futures tournament in the 15,000 category gets 10, a win at 25,000). level 20 points), of which he won five last year (NB Misolic won two 25,000 and three 15,000 events, so he had 70 points from tournament wins). So these 150 points are a real shortcut in his career. It's such a chance he had there and then he goes out into the tiebreak, the hut is full and he doesn't make a single unforced error. It's just unbelievably impressive and just shows where a lot of these games are won: on the first floor between the shoulders. And the boy is extremely well positioned for his 20 years.
Finally: These are very special weeks for Austrian tennis at the moment, we have a U16 European champion, Filip Misolic is doing great in Kitzbühel, Dominic Thiem is getting better and better. Do we have successful years ahead of us?
We've already had very, very successful years, you shouldn't forget that. Only our exceptional player was injured - and he'll be back. If he stays fit, he'll come back. You have to see that it takes time. And now Dominic Thiem is back on a great path anyway. Then we have Jurij Rodionov, who isn't too old either, and for me it's always just a matter of time before he pushes again, until he becomes consistent enough. I think it's super cool that young people are pushing. Also an Ofi who showed after the injury that he has the level to easily get into the top 100. Gerald Melzer, who was out for a long time, who also pushes forward again. And maybe that also arouses feelings in Dennis Novak that he might bite again and want to come forward. Because of course he has the talent. And with a Schwärzler, these are all great signs pointing there. Also a Lukas Neumayer who has made a boost: That looks good. But of course the road is long. And we shouldn't be fooled either, we don't have a player in the top 100 at the moment. I hope that we'll have a few of those guys back in there as soon as possible.
Thank you for the interview.